Future looking good for Hartley

MANAWATU STANDARD

Brendon Hartley is looking likely to be driving in a bigger series next year.

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Another bout of Formula 1 testing suggests Palmerston North driver Brendon Hartley continues to enhance his reputation with his Red Bull employers.

His father Bryan revealed his son did testing for the Red Bull Formula 1 team at Silverstone in England before the second last grand prix in China.

In February he test-drove for Red Bull's other Formula 1 team, Toro Rosso 2008, at Vairano in Italy. That was a three-day shakedown test in the team's 2008 spec car, the STR3, and followed a demonstration drive in another Forumla 1 car in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

It continues to look good for Hartley, who turned 19 only three days ago.

After his third-place finish in the British Formula 3 championship for Red Bull affiliate Carlin Motorsport, Carlin sent him to Hockenheim, Germany, to contest a round of the European Formula 3 championship.

Carlin was running a team in that series but it wasn't performing well so it allowed the team to put Hartley in the driver's seat. He was running with the leaders until forced him out.

All the indications are now that Hartley will move into another series next year.

Bryan Hartley said the details were being worked through and a decision won't be far off. Red Bull are understood to be very happy with Brendon's progress.

"He will probably stay with the same team."

He plans to return home to Palmerston North close to Christmas for a few weeks.

"Before he comes home he will go into a testing programme [with whatever car he will be driving next year]."

Hartley arrived in the former Portuguese enclave of Macau yesterday for the prestigious Macau Grand Prix, which he contested for Carlin last year. He'll be using the same Formula 3 Dallara-Mercedes car he drove in the British championship.

Last year he was the youngest driver to contest the race in its 54-year history. However, his car lacked horsepower around the streets of Macau and he didn't have enough straight-line speed. He finished 12th.

In the British Formula 3 series, he had 22 starts for five wins and was on pole position five times. Last year he won the Eurocup Formula Renault 2.0 series for Epsilon Red Bull.