MADRID (AP) — Formula One team Marussia has hired female test driver Maria de Villota for the season.
The daughter of former Spanish F1 driver Emilio de Villota had tested with Renault last year and has single seater experience in Spanish F3 and the Daytona 24-Hours.
The 32-year-old De Villota will likely get behind the wheel at a young drivers’ testing session in Abu Dhabi at the end of the season. The last woman to enter the F1 championship was Italian driver Giovanna Amati, who failed to qualify for three races in 1992.
Team principal John Booth says De Villota will “sample F1 machinery later in the year, further adding to her racing credentials.”
Marussia goes into its third season after changing its name from Virgin.
