M2 Competition has made their first singing for the 2019 Eurocup Formula Renault campaign, with Indian racer Kush Maini making the move from the BRDC British Formula 3 Championship.
Maini, the younger brother of FIA Formula 2 racer Arjun Maini, took a solitary win at Rockingham as well as seven other top three finishes on his way to third place in the British F3 standings in 2018, and joins M2 Competition’s first foray into the Eurocup championship.
“I’m thrilled to join M2 Competition,” said Maini. “My brother, Arjun, raced with them New Zealand in 2015 and said it’s probably the best team he’s been a part of, so when we heard they were going to start a Formula Renault Eurocup team; I knew we had to reach out to them.
“This is a championship that has produced so many successful F1 drivers over the years so it’s obvious that it’s going to be a huge challenge not only to adapt to a new car-engine-tyre package, but also to the circuits as five of the 10 venues will be totally new to me.
“I’ll be working hard during the winter to be as prepared as I possibly can be for the first collective test at Magny-Cours in March. I can’t wait.”
Nick Cassidy, Lance Stroll, Lando Norris and Robert Shwartzman have all taken titles in the New Zealand-based Toyota Racing Series with the squad that was founded by Jonathan Moury and Mark Pilcher back in 2010, but 2019 marks a new chapter in the teams’ history with its venture into the Eurocup championship as one of at least three new entries alongside BhaiTech Racing and FA Racing by Drivex.
“We are delighted to bring Kush Maini into the team as our first driver for our debut season in the Formula Renault Eurocup,” said Team Principal Moury. “To win in a series as fiercely-competitive as British F3 on only your second weekend takes speed and maturity and Kush certainly has both of these qualities in abundance.
“He adapted extremely well to the new Tatuus when he drove it at Sepang and I’m sure that he can perform strongly, despite the intense level of competition we’re sure to experience. We can’t wait to start our pre-season test programme.”
M2 Competition are not the only team to announce their first 2019 driver, with JD Motorsport announcing French Formula 4 runner-up Ugo de Wilde. The Belgian racer spent two campaigns in the French Formula 4 category, with four victories across the season seeing the sixteen-year-old finish second to Caio Collet.
