DECEMBER 18, 2012

Chilton joins Glock at Marussia

Twenty-one-year-old Max Chilton will become the fourth British driver on the F1 grid in 2013. As expected, Marussia has confirmed Chilton, who had his F1 baptism in free practice at Abu Dhabi, as replacement for Frenchman Charles Pic, who has moved to Caterham. By Tony Dodgins (@TonyDodgins)

Twenty-one-year-old Max Chilton will become the fourth British driver on the F1 grid in 2013. As expected, Marussia has confirmed Chilton, who had his F1 baptism in free practice at Abu Dhabi, as replacement for Frenchman Charles Pic, who has moved to Caterham.

"It's hard to put into words how I'm feeling today," Chilton said. "I'm very fortunate to have spent the last six races with Marussia F1 team as reserve driver, which means that instead of a standing start I am already up to speed and at ease with the people, the culture, the systems, and of course the 2012 package. I feel very lucky to be able to embark on my F1 career with this group of people."

Chilton won feature GP2 races at Hungaroring and Marina Bay in Singapore in 2012 with the Marussia Carlin team, and Marussia F1 team principal John Booth says that the team has been impressed with his progress.

"We spent a significant amount of time evaluating his progress during 2012 and felt confident enough to appoint him reserve driver in September," Booth explained.

"Most recently, in Abu Dhabi, he was put to the test in a competitive enviroment, which included providing him with an opportunity to demonstrate his outright pace and consistency over a single lap. We saw just how much he has progressed since the Silverstone Young Driver test and the succession of GP2 races thereafter."

Chilton joins Lewis Hamilton, Jenson Button and Paul Di Resta as Britain's representatives on the F1 grid.