Photo: Joe Portlock / LAT Images / FIA F2 Championship
Callum Ilott will join the Virtuosi Racing team for his second season in Formula 2 in 2020.
Ilott, who remains a member of the Ferrari Driver Academy, has raced for the Sauber Junior Team by Charouz this season after stepping up from GP3.
The 21-year-old is 11th in the standings ahead of this weekend’s final round in Abu Dhabi, having taken podium finishes in the sprint races in Barcelona and Sochi – the latter from ninth on the grid.
He also qualified on the front row on his Monaco debut after topping his qualifying group – only to suffer a car failure before the start – and claimed pole position in Monza as the Sauber Junior Team’s only entry that weekend.
?I?m really excited to be joining UNI-Virtuosi for 2020,” he said.
“I believe this is the best place for me to fight for the championship title as winning is in the team?s DNA and I share the same hunger for success.
“The professionalism within the team, from the management to the mechanics, is second to none and it?s easy to see why they?re always mentioned in the fight for the championship.
“The three-day test is the perfect opportunity for me to get to know the team and get up to speed, so when we arrive in Bahrain for the first race we can hit the ground running.?
Virtuosi entered F2 in its own right in 2019 after previously running the successful Russian Time outfit.
Luca Ghiotto – who will move into GT racing next year – has won three races for the team and is currently third in the standings, while Renault junior Guanyu Zhou has impressed in his rookie campaign with three podiums as well as a pole position at Silverstone.
It has been expected that Zhou will stay with the team in 2020, although the team says an announcement about Ilott’s team-mate will be made in due course.
Zhou and Ilott were previously team-mates at Prema in European Formula 3 in 2017, as well as being Ferrari academy colleagues the following year.
?We’re very happy to welcome Callum to our team and we are looking forward to working with him,” said team boss Andy Roche.
“He is a very talented driver and showed the paddock this year just how naturally gifted he is.
?Callum?s progress through his maiden season showcased his skill and dedication, and we think that he has the maturity and speed in order to fight for the title in 2020.?