Haas F1 juniors join Trident in F2

Haas Formula 1 junior drivers Santino Ferrucci and Arjun Maini will both race for the Trident Formula 2 squad in 2018.

Ferrucci will contest his first full F2 campaign this year, having taken part in the final part of the 2017 season with the Italian outfit after switching from DAMS’ GP3 team. 

Maini graduates to F2 after scoring one victory on his way to ninth place in the GP3 standings with Jenzer Motorsport in 2017. 

“I'm extremely satisfied and motivated by our 2018 line-up which is a highly competitive and challenging one,” Trident team boss Giacomo Ricci said. “We will be able to rely on two undoubtedly talented drivers in order to build a prestigious future together. 

“Santino Ferrucci merged with our team in perfect fashion last season and really impressed our engineers for his speed, driving skills and commitment. We hope to see him bring home solid results over the course of the season. 

“On the other hand, we have been following Arjun Maini for a while. He showed great driving skills and race conduct which are going to be some really important aspects in a demanding series like Formula 2. 

“We have plenty of work ahead including the rollout of the new cars so I can't wait for the season to start.”

Ferrucci, a podium finisher in GP3, managed a best result of ninth place in Hungary and Belgium after making the step up to F2 last season. The American has been a member of Haas’ F1 junior programme since 2016.

“I am very proud to be back at Trident for my first full season of FIA F2,” he said. “I think I fit extremely well in the team and we have strong potential this season to fight for a championship. I cannot wait to get back behind the wheel for our first preseason test.”

Maini was announced as Haas’ second development driver alongside Ferrucci ahead of the 2017 GP3 season. The 20-year-old Indian won the reserve-grid race at the opening round in Barcelona and claimed a further podium in the Abu Dhabi feature race.

"I’m very excited to be competing in the FIA Formula 2 championship with Team Trident,” Maini said. “I felt we were quite competitive during the postseason test and given that the series is using all new cars for the coming year, I’m quite excited for the year ahead. 

“Trident is a very strong team and I’m sure that if we work hard we’ll be in for some strong results during the course of the coming season."