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Susie Wolff to Become Official Test Driver for Williams F1 Team Next Year

It’s been quite the ride for Scottish professional driver Susie Wollf who started off in karting and managed to become the first woman to take part in a Formula One race weekend in 22 years. Williams Martini F1 team has just announced the 31-year old racer will be stepping up to the position of Official Test Driver for the 2015 F1 season.
Susie Wolff to Become Official Test Driver for Williams F1 Team Next Year 1 photo
Photo: Susie Wolff
She managed to go through some of the toughest stages of motorsport, switching from karting to Formula Renault and Formula Three before moving to the German Car Touring Masters. But the world of professional racing turned its attention to Wolf this year, when she became the first woman to take part in a Formula One race weekend in 22 years, at the British Grand Prix, at Silverstone.

The previous female driver to do so was Giovanni Amati, back in 1992, when she made three unsuccessful Grand Prix qualification attempts. However, bad luck seemed to be chasing Wolff as well, considering her time on the track was cut short after an engine problem occurred following the completion of just one timed lap.

With this new move, Susie will be driving the Williams Mercedes FW37 in two FP1 sessions and two test days during the 2015 Formula One season. According to the F1 team, she will also be conducting extensive simulator testing to help in the ongoing development of the FW37 and FW38.

Her new role comes after Wolf was the Development Driver for Williams for three seasons. This culminated in driving the FW36 during FP1 at the 2014 British and German Grands Prix. According to their statement, the team is currently evaluating a number of drivers to replace Susie in her former position.

This is another step in the right direction for me. I am delighted Williams are recognizing my progression, hard work and that it is performance that counts. [...] I’ll be using my position to work closely with Felipe and Valtteri to make sure that the FW37 builds on the strong performance shown by the team,” Susie Wolff said.
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