Formula 1 News

Force India: Giancarlo Fisichella and Ralf Schumacher to test at Jerez 

Force India, formerly Spyker, announced earlier this morning that Giancarlo Fisichella and Ralf Schumacher will have a full day of testing in the upcoming tests at Jerez next week; Fisichella and Schumacher will be among 7 drivers (the other 5 are: Christian Klien, Vitantonio Liuzzi, Franck Montagny, Giedo van der Garde and Roldan Rodriguez) testing for Force India.

A Force India spokesman said that Adrian Sutil, was confirmed for 2008 season and as such he won’t test at Jerez.

Ralf Schumacher,  left Toyota in October after three years. The 32 year old German, winner of six Grand Prix for Williams, appeared confident about continuing his career in Formula One but has attracted little interest in his services.

Mallya, Force India owner, was a sponsor of Toyota this season through his Kingfisher Airlines while technical head Mike Gascoyne has worked with Schumacher at Jordan and Toyota. “I have known Vijay for many years over my time with Toyota. I fully understand his passion for the sport and know that he will put this drive into Force India to make it a success,” said Schumacher in a team statement. “Driving for a young dynamic team with high ambitions is a good opportunity, but at the moment it is just one test to see how we get on working together, and whether this is possible. I think I can help the team with its development program but we will see.”

Fisichella’s inclusion is a clear sign that he will not continue to race with Renault. Fernando Alonso is expected to return to his former team, with Brazilian Nelson Piquet junior poised to graduate from the reserve role. Renault also have Finland’s Heikki Kovalainen as another option. “Whilst no drivers have been officially confirmed by Renault, the team has given me permission to explore other options,” said Fisichella. “I was invited to test with Force India F1 Team at Jerez and I was very happy to accept it.”

Franck Montagny was a test driver for Toyota this season and started seven races for Super Aguri in 2006 after three years as a Renault reserve. The Frenchman, will test with Fisichella on Tuesday. Klien will test on Wednesday, with the team able to compare him alongside Fisichella, while Schumacher is paired with Liuzzi on the Thursday.