JANUARY 9, 2009

Buemi signs for Toro Rosso

Scuderia Toro Rosso has announced that Sebastien Buemi will drive for the team in the 2009 Formula 1 season. The twenty year old from Aigle, Switzerland competed in GP2 last

year, when he was also the reserve driver for Red Bull Racing. For most of his racing career, he has been supported by Red Bull as part of its Junior Driver programme.

"We are delighted to welcome Sebastien, who was already part of the Red Bull family, to our team," said Franz Tost. "Our engineers have been impressed with his speed in the car and his ability to learn and progress during the testing he has carried out for us last year. That, along with some impressive performances in GP2 was enough to convince us to give him the drive. His appointment also fulfils the aims of the Red Bull Junior Driver programme and meets Dietrich Mateschitz's intention to use Scuderia Toro Rosso as a showcase for young drivers the company has supported in the lower formulae."

Buemi's first outing as a Toro Rosso driver will be at Portimao, Portugal later this month