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Following on from a podium finish in the 2018 Ad Diriyah E-Prix for Mahindra Racing's Jerome d'Ambrosio, the Indian team has named Sergey Sirotkin and its Development Driver Sam Dejonghe as its drivers for the in-season rookie test following the 2019 Marrakesh E-Prix on January 13.
With a Formula One season under his belt with the Williams outfit, 23-year old Sirotkin secured his first karting championship title at the age of 11 before making his single-seater debut just three years later. By 2012, the Russian was taking race wins in Auto GP and Formula 3. He was signed as Sauber F1’s test driver at the age of 19 and made an impact in his debut GP2 Series season in 2015, finishing as the highest placed rookie, with a race win and five podiums to his name. His second season saw him score two race victories and finish third overall in the standings, as well as being handed a second F1 testing contract with Renault. The Russian driver was signed by Williams F1 to a race seat for the 2018 season, where he was able to score his maiden F1 point.
“Formula E is now one of the most rapidly developing championships. The competition here is at very high level," said Sirotkin.
"More manufacturers are entering the series as they are confident that electric cars have strong future potential.
"More technical solutions appear in these cars and they are progressing rapidly. I drove a Formula E car in 2016 but now the car generation has changed it will be interesting to try the difference.
"I’m looking forward for this great experience with Mahindra Racing.”
Alongside Sirotkin will be the team's Simulator and Development Driver Sam Dejonghe. Starting out in indoor karting at seven years old, the Belgium driver made the step up to the Formula Renault 2.0 Northern European Cup in 2010. A year later – and in his rookie season - Dejonghe was the 2011 European F3 Open Championship Cup Vice-Champion. Switching from single seaters, Dejonghe adapted his driving style to compete in sportscar racing, competing in multiple GT and Prototype series'. In November 2017, Dejonghe took up his current role as simulator and development driver for Mahindra Racing. During the development of the team's new Gen2 car, Dejonghe drove the car as it made its UK debut at CarFest. The rookie test in Marrakesh will see him take part his second official Formula E rookie test.
“There’s no better way to start 2019 than being able to jump into the new Gen2 Formula E car, said the Belgian driver.
"With my simulation experience, it will be nice to get some real time correlation and see how much I’ve advanced in Formula E having also driven the Mahindra Racing M4Electro.
"Although I want to enjoy the overall race weekend, the goal for the rookie test is simple; I want to help the team develop a race winning car as soon as possible by providing them with the best possible feedback.”
Join us for the second round of a brand new season of Formula E as all 22 Gen2 cars take to the majestic streets of Marrakesh.