The first tests of Daniel Ricciardo at Red Bull

The British Formula 3 champion, Daniel Ricciardo, will make his F1 debut next month with tests for the Austrian team Red Bull Racing. The team has confirmed that the 20-year-old Australian will be their driver for the ‘young driver’ tests to be held in Jerez from December 1st to 3rd.

Ricciardo, a Red Bull protégé, dominated the British F3 this year and claimed a Formula Renault championship title. His compatriot and former Red Bull test driver, Brendon Hartley, will drive for Toro Rosso during the same tests. There could potentially be another driver from the young driver program of the energy drink team.

« We are going to test Brendon Hartley and we will see if a second driver will come on behalf of Red Bull to join us for these tests, » said team boss Franz Tost.

The majority of teams will be testing young drivers in Jerez who have achieved success in other championships during this 2009 season. Ferrari is expected to test the best talents from Italian Formula 3, similar to what was done in Fiorano last winter. Williams will give a chance to Formula 2 champion Andy Soucek alongside their 2010 recruit, Nico Hülkenberg. Before their departure, the BMW Sauber team will honor their commitment by testing Alexander Rossi and Esteban Gutierrez. This is a kind of reward for respectively winning last year’s Formula BMW World Final and the European title.