F1 News, Reports and Race Results

Ferrari keeps Wehrlein in simulator role for 2020

Ferrari has retained Mahindra Formula E charger Pascal Wehrlein as its development and simulator driver for the 2020 season.

Wehrlein will handle the Scuderia's simulator work for the second year running, dovetailing his duties with his Formula E commitments.

Formula 1's restrictions on in-season testing has justified big investments from the sport's teams in simulator infrastructure, with outfits using dedicated drivers on race weekends to contribute to their team's set-up and development work.

"We still have experienced drivers for [2020] in the simulator," said Scuderia boss Mattia Binotto.

"So Pascal is staying with us [in 2020] but we’ve got as well other drivers who maybe are not so much experienced in Formula 1, but have done many years of simulator.

"Our simulator drivers are very well integrated in the team. The simulator is more and more important, that’s why we will invest on the simulator in the future."

The House of Maranello, thanks to the good results of its road car division, has invested heavily in an upgrade of its virtual equipment, underscoring its increasing importance.

"We're prepared to invest, and luckily the car business can support those investments, not only in terms of people, but also in terms of infrastructure," said Ferrari chief executive Louis Camilleri.

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