Lucas Auer will join Prema Powerteam for a campaign in the renewed F3 European Championship, becoming the second officially-announced driver from their four-driver lineup after Alex Lynn was confirmed at the end of 2012.
The 18-year-old Austrian, nephew of former F1 driver Gerhard Berger, has done well in his rookie years of car racing, winning the JK Racing Asia series in 2011 and taking second in German F3 last year.? The news comes right off the back of Auer’s impressive weekend at the opening round of the 2013 Toyota Racing Series, where the Austrian took two pole positions and a win and is currently residing in second in standings, just behind Felix Serralles.
Concerning his promotion, Auer said: “Prema Powerteam is the most successful F3 team during the past years. I’m very happy to be a part of them now. I’ve got really strong team mates and I’m sure this will push me at the race weekends. So I’m really looking forward to the 2013 season”.
Team principal Angelo Rosin added: “Auer is a very interesting driver and we look forward to work with him throughout the season. I’m proud that he decided to choose our team, and also together with the already-confirmed Alex Lynn we will be able to rely on two of the most talented prospects of Europe”.
Prema Powerteam took both the drivers’ and the teams’ title in the 2012 F3 Euro Series, with a lineup consisting of Daniel Juncadella (the current champion of the series), Ferrari Driver Academy member Raffaele Marciello, Sven Muller and Michael Lewis. Marciello is expected to take up one of the remaining seats at the team for 2013, with Muller, Lewis and Eddie Cheever amongst the contenders for the fourth seat.
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By Peter Allen
Auer has done well in his two seasons in car racing to date, but 2013 will provide his greatest challenge. His JKRAS title and and German F3 runner-up position came against significantly weaker opposition than he will face in the FIA’s new F3 European Championship. His performances last weekend in the Toyota Racing Series proved what he is capable of though, beating new teammate Lynn and scoring only a few points less than Serralles – who will enter the European F3 series with Fortec.
He showed promise on his one-off Euro F3 debut with Van Amersfort Racing at the end of last year, but with top squad Prema he has the potential to be a leading contender in 2013.
We included Auer in our 13 drivers to watch in 2013 – click here to see the full list.