Venturi have chosen Frenchman Tom Dillmann to replace Maro Engel at the Paris ePrix next month.
Engel is unavailable for the next round of the championship due to his DTM commitments with Mercedes, and with no official reserve driver Venturi had spent the last months trying to find a temporary replacement.
They settled on Dillmann, who they were able to give some running to at the Mexico ePrix shakedown a few weeks ago.
He’ll get more time in their VM200-FE-02 car as the team are also planning to set aside one of their filming days for the Frenchman, which will allow him 50km more running.
Speaking after the announcement Dillmann said that he was hoping to use the opportunity as a springboard to a full time drive in the future.
He commented, “I’m delighted with having the chance of contesting the race in France as Venturi`s reserve driver.
“Formula E is an exciting place to be for a driver – with thrilling motor racing and interesting technical developments. It goes without saying that it’s my goal to contest a full season in this series in the future.”
Dillmann first came to prominence after winning the German Formula 3 Championship in 2010.
This earned him a drive in GP3 and eventually GP2 – however he only managed one win in four years of competition.
More recently he has competed in the Formula V8 3.5 series, and currently tops the driver’s standings.
Speaking about the decision, Venturi co-owner Marc Gindorf said, “Tom already impressed us with his professionalism in Mexico where he intensely dealt with the team and the approach of the engineers.
“This will prove to be helpful for him in Paris. We think that he represents our perfect choice for this race.”
