SEPTEMBER 3, 2010

Lotus makes dreams come true...

Sixteen-year-old Malaysian Nabil Jeffri became the youngest driver to test an F1 car when he conducted a day of aero testing for Lotus Racing on the Duxford RAF Museum's runway in Cambridge, England.

Sixteen-year-old Malaysian Nabil Jeffri became the youngest driver to test an F1 car when he conducted a day of aero testing for Lotus Racing on the Duxford RAF Museum's runway in Cambridge, England. Jeffri is a member of the AirAsia ASEAN Driver Development programme.

"I had an incredible day, one of the best of my life, and I want to thank Lotus Racing, Tony Fernandes and Mike Gascoyne for giving me the chance to drive," Jeffri said. "I have to admit that the first time I went out it was pretty scary - everyone told me the acceleration would be unbelievable, and the braking would be so much greater than anything I've ever experienced, and it took a while to get used to that. It'll be a long time before the excitement wears off, but I'll keep on working hard to one day the F1 grid, and with the support of people like Tony and Lotus Racing, I've got a great chance of doing so."

Chief technical officer Mike Gascoyne oversaw the test and said: "Aero testing is an important part of the ongoing development of the car and it's great that we can give an opportunity to someone as young as Nabil to help us take another step forward. He completed the planned programme, gave clear and precise feedback, and we couldn't ask any more of him than that."

Jeffri is currently contesting the Asian Formula BMW Championship.