MAY 20, 2005

Panis to rejoin Toyota for French GP

With the rules concerning third drivers having changed in recent weeks, there is now the possibility that Olivier Panis can come back to F1 as a third driver and so Toyota has decided that to help boost interest for the event and to help Toyota's profile in France, it will run him instead of Ricardo Zonta at Magny-Cours.

"Olivier was not eligible to drive the third car with the regulations as they were at the start of the 2005 season," said team boss John Howett. "But now this rule has been relaxed, we felt it would be a good opportunity to ask Olivier to drive the third car for the French Grand Prix, his home race. Olivier's reputation as a quick, technically-minded driver is well documented and he has contributed greatly to the success that we have enjoyed this season. Ricardo has a busy race and test schedule this year, so we believe that this decision will also allow him to enjoy a weekend off before returning for the British Grand Prix the following week."