Red Bull adds Ticktum to Bahrain test line-up

©RedBull

Red Bull Racing has included junior driver Dan Ticktum in its driver line-up for next week's post-Bahrain Grand Prix two-day in-season test.

The two-time Macau Grand Prix winner will driver the team's RB15 on the second day of the Sakhir test, with Max Verstappen handling testing duties for the Milton Keynes-based outfit on Tuesday's opening day.

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The 19-year-old British hopeful who was beaten to the European F3 title last year by Mick Schumacher is racing this year in Japan's competitive Super Formula series.

Ticktum was earmarked as a potential replacement for Pierre Gasly or Brendon Hartley at Toro Rosso for 2019, but an incomplete number of super licence points precluded him from being considered for the drive.

Ticktum has been a member of Red Bull's young driver programmed since 2017 when he put his motorsport career back in gear after a year on the sidelines as a result of a ban he had received for his involvement in an MSA Formula incident at Silverstone.

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Phillip van Osten

Motor racing was a backdrop from the outset in Phillip van Osten's life. Born in Southern California, Phillip grew up with the sights and sounds of fast cars thanks to his father, Dick van Osten, an editor and writer for Auto Speed and Sport and Motor Trend. Phillip's passion for racing grew even more when his family moved to Europe and he became acquainted with the extraordinary world of Grand Prix racing. He was an early contributor to the monthly French F1i Magazine, often providing a historic or business perspective on Formula 1's affairs. In 2012, he co-authored along with fellow journalist Pierre Van Vliet the English-language adaptation of a limited edition book devoted to the great Belgian driver Jacky Ickx. He also authored "The American Legacy in Formula 1", a book which recounts the trials and tribulations of American drivers in Grand Prix racing. Phillip is also a commentator for Belgian broadcaster Be.TV for the US Indycar series.