From our colleagues at Formula One:
Alexander Rossi, a 19-year-old from Nevada City, Calif., on Saturday was one of seven drivers appointed as part of the Team Lotus driver development program. This takes Rossi a step closer to a possible Formula One drive, and with the U.S. Grand Prix in Austin scheduled for next year, he may have a better chance than one might think.
Team Lotus handout/Charles Coates/LAT Photographic Alexander Rossi, 19, joined the Team Lotus driver development program.
Not that Rossi would not otherwise be a potential candidate. On Saturday he drove the Team Lotus Formula One car in Malaysia, along with the regular team drivers, Jarno Trulli and Heikki Kovalainen. This was part of the buildup to the Malaysian Grand Prix next weekend, as it is partly a home race for the Malaysian-owned team. But it was not the first time Rossi had driven an F1 car; he tested the BMW Sauber in 2009.
“It is a real privilege to be part of the Air Asia Team Lotus Driver Development Program in its first year,” Rossi said. “There’s a lot of enthusiasm in the program and I am very excited to be working with talented and experienced motorsport professionals such as Alex Yoong.”
Yoong, of course, was the Malaysian driver who made it to Formula One a decade ago when the Malaysian Grand Prix was added to the calendar. “It has been noticed that races are always more popular when a local hero is driving. On the other hand, the driver has to win to keep the country interested; if Rossi is hoping to move into a Team Lotus drive, he will not likely win for a while. But who knows. The American Scott Speed joined the Toro Rosso team and was soon forgotten. Read more…
From our colleagues at the Formula One blog:
KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia — After scoring pole position at the first two races and dropping from the lead with a technical problem each time, Sebastian Vettel of Germany leaped from third on the grid at the Malaysian Grand Prix here on Sunday to take the lead from his Red Bull teammate by the first corner. He never dropped it.
Through the extreme heat and humidity, Vettel and his car held it all together and took his first victory of the season, the sixth of his career and his first at the Malaysian Grand Prix. Mark Webber, his teammate, held on to to second place, giving the Red Bull team a one-two finish.
“A big relief, sorry,” Vettel said, before apologizing that he felt a little tipsy from drinking too much Champagne on the podium to cool down from the extreme heat. “I’m very pleased. It’s a great day for us, for Red Bull, with the first two races not finishing where we wanted to be.”
Nico Rosberg, who started the race in second position in his Mercedes and slotted into third by the first corner, also held on to that until the end. Read more here.