Calderón handed Sauber filming day opportunity

Alfa Romeo Sauber F1 test driver Tatiana Calderón will have the opportunity to take the wheel of the C37 next week.

The 25-year-old from Colombia will be taking part in a filming day at the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez on Tuesday, following this weekend's Mexican Grand Prix.

She will be able to complete up to 100 kilometres - or 23 laps - as part of a promotional event being staged by the team. Under the current regulations, each team is allowed two such private tests per year.

"We are pleased to announce that Tatiana Calderón will be driving our car [next week]" said team principal Frédéric Vasseur.

"Over the past two years of our collaboration, Tatiana has proved to be a valuable part of our team by continuously showing her dedication to our project, as well as a very strong work ethic and enthusiasm for our sport.”

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Although Calderón has been working with Sauber in a test capacity for the last two seasons, this will be the GP3 driver's first chance to try out the F1 car on a race track.

“I am very thankful and excited about the opportunity given to me," said Calderon. "It will be an incredible experience.

"As a Latin American driver, there could not be a more special place for me to make my debut behind the wheel of a Formula 1 car," she added.

She thanked sponsors Escudería Telmex, Telcel, Infinitum and Claro for the opportunity "to drive a Formula 1 car for the first time in my career."

The car will carry the logo of Telcel, a leading Mexican wireless telecommunications provider, on the rear wing and nose cone for the occasion.

The promotional event will run alongside Sauber's participation in a tyre test for Pirelli being held at the circuit on the same day.

Carlos Slim Domit, chairman of the board of Telcel's parent company América Móvil, also welcomed the opportunity for Calderon to get some F1 experience.

“We are very proud to be part of Tatiana’s project. Her career has been built with talent, effort, sacrifice and dedication which is widely reflected in her results that have made her the first Latin American woman to be part of a Formula One team with the Alfa Romeo Sauber F1 Team.

"This allows her to achieve a new goal representing an important step in her career and pride for all race fans in Colombia and Latin America, particularly for women and racing in general.”

Kimi Raikkonen will join Sauber for 2019 alongside Antonio Giovinazzi, with current driver Marcus Ericsson remaining as the team's third driver.

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Andrew Lewin

Andrew first became a fan of Formula 1 during the time when Michael Schumacher and Damon Hill were stepping into the limelight after the era of Alain Prost, Nigel Mansell and Aryton Senna. He's been addicted ever since, and has been writing about the sport now for nearly a quarter of a century for a number of online news sites. He's also written professionally about GP2 (now Formula 2), GP3, IndyCar, World Rally Championship, MotoGP and NASCAR. In his other professional life, Andrew is a freelance writer, social media consultant, web developer/programmer, and digital specialist in the fields of accessibility, usability, IA, online communities and public sector procurement. He worked for many years in magazine production at Bauer Media, and for over a decade he was part of the digital media team at the UK government's communications department. Born and raised in Essex, Andrew currently lives and works in south-west London.