Tatiana Calderón has been retained by Alfa Romeo Racing as the team’s test driver for the 2019 Formula 1 season, alongside her race seat with Arden International in the FIA Formula 2 Championship.
Calderón completed a promotional run for the team in its former Sauber guise in October 2018 in Mexico City, driving the 2018 C37 after the Mexican Grand Prix weekend.
The Colombian then went on to partake in a two-day November test at Fiorano in a 2013-spec C32 Sauber, impressing the team “with her dedication”.
In January, Calderón said she hopes that her test outings will bring the chance for a drive in an official Free Practice session in 2019 and thanked Alfa Romeo and team principal Frédéric Vasseur for their continued support.
“I’m extremely happy to continue as test driver for Alfa Romeo Racing this year,” said Calderón, in a statement released today.
“They’ve done a fantastic job from one year to the other and it’s always a privilege to work alongside such an experienced people.
“They gave me my first opportunity to drive a Formula One car and I love being part of the team.
“Hopefully, we can achieve great things together in the near future.”
Vasseur echoed the optimism from Calderón, listing a number of qualities that impressed the team throughout her test runs.
“We are pleased to announce that we will continue our collaboration with Tatiana Calderón as test driver,” said Vasseur.
“The team is impressed by Tatiana’s commitment, persistence and skill.
“She delivered a good performance when she was given the opportunity to drive a Formula One car for the first-time last season and has proven to be a valuable member of our team.
“Together, we will work on further developing Tatiana’s skills as a driver and the Alfa Romeo Racing project.””
Calderón has made the step up from the championship formerly known as the GP3 Series to F2 with Arden in 2019, having missed out on a seat with Alfa Romeo/Sauber’s junior side Charouz Racing.
The 25-year-old will become the first female driver to compete in F1’s premier feeder series since Giovanna Amata in the 1991 International Formula 3000 championship.
