Photo: Jakob Ebrey Photography
Despite having already announced his switch from Protyre Formula Renault to join Manor MP Motorsport in Formula Renault 2.0 NEC, Raoul Owens has had to move to Mark Burdett Motorsport due to the exit of Manor MP from the series.
?We were quite surprised our plans had to change but we?re really looking forward to racing with Mark?s team, they had a lot of success last year in NEC and have a really great reputation for helping develop young drivers,? said the 18-year-old racer. ?The team has a lot of experience in Formula Renault in the UK, and now in Europe as well, so we?re confident of a really strong season. It?ll be an incredibly tough challenge but we?re ready and I know Mark Burdett Motorsport will give me a very competitive car.?
Owens made his single-seater debut in 2011, however, he only completed his first full-season in 2012, finishing 19th in Formula Renault BARC (now known as Protyre Formula Renault).
?I?m very pleased Raoul has joined us. We?ve followed him for the last couple of years in BARC and we saw him at Spa last year when he had a one-off outing in the NEC, he did a good job there,” commented team boss Mark Burdett. “Raoul is very focused on doing well, he?s eager to learn and we?ve got everything in place with Robbie [Kerr, driver coach] and Andy [Miller, engineer] to help him develop fully as a driver.?
Owens will race alongside Colombian driver Andres M?ndez.