Pascal Wehrlein completes Sauber’s line-up after missing Mercedes seat
Mercedes junior driver Pascal Wehrlein will race for Sauber this year.
Wehrlein had been in the running for the vacant Mercedes F1 Team seat alongside Lewis Hamilton, but the squad favoured Valtteri Bottas’s experience ( see above).
Wehrlein – the 2015 DTM champion – was also under consideration for a seat with Force India, but was overlooked for Esteban Ocon.
Wehrlein will now join Sauber to race alongside Marcus Ericsson. The deal means that Felipe Nasr is set to miss out on a race seat this year.
“It is a new challenge in a new team, and I am really excited for this new adventure,” said Wehrlein.
“Our objective is to establish ourselves in the midfield and to score points on a regular basis. That being said, I will do my best to support Sauber and want to say a big thank you for trusting me and giving me this great chance.”
Sauber’s Monisha Kaltenborn added: “Pascal has shown talent throughout his career, and he proved his potential by scoring his first point in F1 last year.
“There is surely more to come from Pascal, and we want to give him the chance to grow and learn at the pinnacle of motorsport.”