Toro Rosso have confirmed that Sebastien Bourdais will drive for them once again this coming Formula One season.
Frenchman returns for second season
Toro Rosso have confirmed that Sebastien Bourdais will drive for them once again this coming Formula One season.
The 29-year-old Frenchman, who partnered Sebastian Vettel last year, will join rookie Sebastien Buemi after Vettel moved on to parent team Red Bull Racing.
Bourdais said: "It has been a very long and difficult winter but now the waiting is finally over and I am really excited about tackling my second season with Scuderia Toro Rosso.
"Now I can focus on preparing for the coming season. It promises to be a very interesting one thanks to all the rule changes and I'm also looking forward to establishing a good relationship with my new team-mate."
Team principal Franz Tost added: "We are pleased that Sebastien will be with us again for another season. After one year with Toro Rosso we expect him to profit from the experience he gained last season."
Bourdais, who won the Champ Car series four times in a row from 2004 to 2007, picked up four points in his first season in Formula One with seventh places in Australia and Belgium.
However, he was cast somewhat in the shadow of Vettel, who won both his and the team's first race at the Italian Grand Prix in September.
Bourdais tested for Toro Rosso late last year alongside Japanese driver Takuma Sato, in what amounted to a shoot-out for the vacant seat.
Money a factor?
Sato issued a statement on Friday emphasising that he has "unfinished business in F1".
He added: "I am determined to stay in top level motorsport and I will be fully focused on making a return to F1 as long as any opportunity is there."
However, Sato's manager Andrew Gilbert-Scott suggested money had been the deciding factor in the decision.
"Taku had showed tremendous speed and commitment during the three tests he did for the team and I believe he proved to be the faster driver," he said.
"Unfortunately however the team made no secret about the fact that they would need the drive to bring a substantial amount of funding to the team to secure the drive.
"We have...been able to attract a significant amount of sponsorship to support the team but unfortunately it was obviously not enough to secure the drive."
With Honda still looking for a buyer, Toro Rosso's confirmation of Bourdais means that all seats on the 2009 F1 grid have now been taken.
