Strakka Racing signs Gustav Malja for 2015 Formula Renault 3.5 campaign
19-year-old Swede joins Strakka Racing’s 2015 Formula Renault 3.5 line-up for debut WSR season
Strakka Racing has signed FR2.0 NEC front-runner Gustav Malja for its 2015 Formula Renault 3.5 championship campaign. Malja, 19, currently part of the Swedish national motor racing team and McLaren Performance Academy Driver of 2014, scored two victories in the highly competitive Formula Renault NEC series en route to fifth in the 2014 standings.
“Gustav is definitely one to watch and we are delighted to have such a focused and committed driver at Strakka Racing,” says team principal Dan Walmsley. “Getting Gustav signed early means we can start straight away on our in-house simulator together with the Strakka Performance team and build upon Gustav’s impressive winter testing.”
“I am absolutely thrilled to be stepping up to the Formula Renault 3.5 Series with Strakka Racing this season,” says Gustav Malja. “I’ve felt immediately at home with the team, and we share the same view about how to go racing. I’m convinced that their way of working will allow me to get the most out of myself in my rookie year. Joining this championship will mark the greatest challenge of my career so far, but I learned a lot in winter testing and I do feel well-prepared. This is a fantastic opportunity; I can’t wait for the season to get underway.”
Strakka Racing is aiming to build on its 2014 season, securing victories at Monza and Jerez, as well as scoring a further two podiums en-route to sixth in the Teams’ and Drivers’ championship.
This year’s Formula Renault 3.5 calendar features nine rounds across Europe, including one on the iconic streets of Monaco supporting the FIA Formula One World Championship. “The World Series by Renault in our view offers the ideal preparation for F1,” adds Walmsley. “Getting our first driver signed at the very start of the year underlines both its appeal and the unique support on and off track that Strakka provides to serious and committed racing drivers. We expect to announce our second driver soon.”
Press Contact
Nick Bailey, 44 (0) 7813 956664
From early domestic campaigns with BMWs and Aston Martins, Strakka Racing has evolved to become one of the most respected and successful privateer teams in the World Endurance Championship. In 2010 the Silverstone-based team achieved a class win, five circuit records and fifth overall in the iconic Le Mans 24 Hours. Ever developing, in 2013 Strakka Racing entered the Formula Renault 3.5 litre World Series single seater championship, regarded as one of the best training grounds before F1. In 2014 Strakka Racing joined forces with esteemed Japanese chassis manufacturer DOME to develop, market and race the Strakka DOME S103 LMP2 chassis. Alongside the racing teams, it also runs Strakka Performance, providing professional racing drivers with bespoke programmes aimed at enhancing their on-track performance with dedicated track time and coaching in World Series by Renault cars. It has also created the championship-winning Zanardi Strakka Kart racing team and a Formula Renault 2.0 team, putting in place the building blocks to enable racing drivers to develop and refine their skills right from the start of their career, with a support infrastructure that goes beyond any typical racing team.
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