Giovinazzi completes Sauber 2019 line-up
Ferrari reserve driver Antonio Giovinazzi will race alongside Kimi Raikkonen for Sauber in the 2019 Formula 1 championship.
The move comes weeks after the announcement that fellow Ferrari protégé Charles Leclerc had earned a promotion to the factory team next season.
The 2016 GP2 runner up’s appointment at Sauber continues the team’s bond to Ferrari and “is particularly significant in the scope of the project that this season saw the return of Alfa Romeo to the pinnacle of motorsports,” the team said in a statement.
“I am delighted to be joining the Alfa Romeo Sauber F1 team,” Giovinazzi said. “This is a dream come true and it is a great pleasure to have the chance to race for this team.
“As an Italian, it is a huge honour for me to represent a brand as iconic and successful as Alfa Romeo in our sport.
“I would like to thank the Scuderia Ferrari and the Alfa Romeo Sauber F1 Team for giving me this great opportunity. I am very motivated and cannot wait to start working towards achieving great results together.”
Giovinazzi made his F1 debut with Sauber in 2017, when he stood in for full-time driver Pascal Wehrlein. He picked up a 12th place finish in the opening race of the season before retiring in Bahrain.
He has also made a number of FP1 appearances for Haas and Sauber.
“We are very pleased to reveal the complete driver line-up for the 2019 season,” said team principal Frederic Vasseur. “We first signed Kimi Raikkonen, an extremely experienced driver who will contribute to the development of our car and will accelerate the progress of our team as a whole.
“Together with Alfa Romeo, we are delighted to welcome Antonio Giovinazzi, who will take the place of Charles Leclerc.
“We have already had the opportunity to work with him in the past and he has proven to have great potential. We are very determined and motivated. Our target is to continue progressing and fighting together for positions that count.”
Sauber also thanked Marcus Ericsson for his services over the past four years. He will continue as a third driver and brand ambassador next season.