OCTOBER 12, 2001

Sauber confirms Massa

THE Sauber team has confirmed that Felipe Massa will be Nick Heidfeld's teammate in 2002.

"We have once again opted for a talented young driver," said Peter Sauber. "He convinced us with his excellent performance during tests at Mugello."

Massa began racing at the age of eight and enjoyed a successful career in karts. In 1998 he switched to car racing and finished fifth in the Formula Chevrolet series despite only taking part in half the races. The following year he won the title and in 2000 moved to Europe and won both the Italian and European Formula Renault titles.

This year he has dominated the new European Formula 3000 title.