Youngsters join F1 stars for end of season running at Yas Marina
Wednesday 2 December 2015 15:46, UK
A raft of youngsters are set to be given their opportunity to impress at next week's year-ending tyre test at Abu Dhabi.
The test, to be staged behind closed doors between 9am and 9pm on Tuesday, is being held to enable Pirelli to test their 2016 tyres including a new ultrasoft compound which will be marked by purple sidewalls.
The teams will run one car each, with their programme designated by Pirelli, and have been ordered not to test any new parts during their running.
Mercedes reserve driver Pascal Wehrlein has said he will drive the W06 for the world champions while Force India have confirmed that newly-appointed 19-year-old Mexican Alfonso Celis will debut, sharing the driving with Nico Hulkenberg.
GP2 champion Stoffel Vandoorne will further his F1 experience by driving for McLaren ahead of his role as the team's reserve driver in 2016.
Adderly Fong will test again for Sauber, having previously tested in Valencia and driven during Practice One at the 2014 Abu Dhabi GP.
Manor will also use the test to try out some new blood with 21-year-old Jordan King, the son of former Sainsbury's CEO Justin King who was appointed Manor's interim chairman in March, behind the wheel of an F1 car for the first time in his career as he shares driving duties on Tuesday with Rio Haryanto. Both King and Haryanto currently race in GP2, standing 12th and 4th respectively in the Drivers' Championship.
When the chequered flag falls on Tuesday night, it will mark the start of an 80-day shutdown for the sport with F1 only returning to the track on February 22 next year for the first of two pre-season tests to be staged at Barcelona - although a wet-weather test has been mooted for mid-January at the Paul Ricard circuit in France.
Abu Dhabi test line-up
Mercedes - Pascal Wehrlein (Unconfirmed)
Ferrari - Sebastian Vettel (first) and Kimi Raikkonen (second)
Red Bull - Daniel Ricciardo
McLaren - Stoffel Vandoorne
Williams - Valtteri Bottas
Force India - Alfonso Celis and Nico Hulkenberg
Lotus - Jolyon Palmer
Toro Rosso - Carlos Sainz (morning) and Max Verstappen (afternoon)
Sauber - Adderly Fong
Manor - Jordan King and Rio Haryanto
Don't miss the F1 Midweek Report for analysis of the Abu Dhabi GP and all the latest F1 news. Former BAR boss David Richards and car designer Gary Anderson join Natalie Pinkham on Sky Sports F1 at 8:30pm on Wednesday.
