Pascal Wehrlein is hoping to help Ferrari win the Formula 1 title they “deserve” as a development driver in 2019.
The former Manor and Sauber driver was free to join the Scuderia after leaving Mercedes’ young driver program at the end of last year.
It is also claimed fellow German Sebastian Vettel also campaigned for Wehrlein to get one of two positions which became available following Antonio Giovinazzi and Daniil Kvyat’s return to F1 for this year.
“It makes me extremely proud. It’s an honour for me to work for Ferrari,” he told Auto Bild. “I’ve been to Maranello and I’ve felt a mood there that I’ve never experienced before. Ferrari is just something very special.
“I will do my utmost to help Sebastian Vettel and the entire Ferrari team to win the world championship. They deserve it.”
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And the importance of the role Wehrlein, along with former Toro Rosso driver Brendon Hartley and Academy drivers Davide Rigon and Antonio Fuoco, can have in shaping Ferrari’s year is “very important” according to team boss Mattia Binotto.
“They can basically be compared to the test drivers of yesterday, as testing is extremely limited today,” he added.