Scuderia Ferrari will hand Robert Shwartzman a maiden official Formula 1 Test session outing in the post-Abu Dhabi Grand Prix Young driver test, with Antonio Fuoco also getting some running behind the wheel of the SF1000.
Shwartzman is a front-runner in the FIA Formula 2 Championship in 2020 and has an outside chance of taking the title a year after winning the FIA Formula 3 Championship with Prema Racing. The SMP Racing-backed Russian has three wins to his name including feature race victories at the Red Bull Ring and the Hungaroring.
“It’s exciting to know that I will be driving the SF1000 in Abu Dhabi immediately after the end of the Formula 1 season,” said Shwartzman. “I was able to try the SF71H at Fiorano at the end of September and it was incredible, even though that car is almost three years old now.
“I can’t wait to jump into the 2020 car and get out on track alongside so many of the drivers I’ve been racing against in Formula 2. I plan to enjoy every single minute of this great experience.”
Fuoco has been a long-time member of the Ferrari Driver Academy but has spent the majority of the past couple of years focused on supporting Ferrari’s young drivers and running in the Maranello-based team’s simulator. He last tested with Ferrari back in 2019 so Abu Dhabi will mark his first opportunity to run the 2020 SF1000.
“I’m very happy to get back behind the wheel of a real car, having done so many virtual laps in the SF1000 in the simulator,” said Fuoco. “It’s very useful for someone in my position, to be able from time to time to get into a car and check the correlation between the tools I usually use and how the car actually behaves on track.
“On top of that, it’s an honour to put on the red race suit and drive a Ferrari on track, a feeling that is always hard to put into words.”
