Klien is Honda test and reserve driver.

Honda announced this afternoon its test driver line-up for the 2007 season. Joining race drivers Jenson Button and Rubens Barrichello will be Christian Klien in the role of Test and Reserve Driver, while James Rossiter steps up to the role of an official test driver.

"I am very proud to be joining the Honda Racing F1 Team," said the former Jaguar and Red Bull racer. "This is a fantastic opportunity for me to work with one of the top manufacturers in Formula One and alongside two of the best race drivers. I have three years of F1 experience to contribute and I am looking forward to helping Honda to achieve its ambitions. Equally, I have a great opportunity to progress my own career. I am very much looking forward to driving the car for the first time when winter testing begins."

Klien brings with him a wealth of experience which belies his 23 years of age. He has raced in 46 Grand Prix in the three seasons since his F1 debut at the 2004 Australian Grand Prix, prior to which he worked his way up through the ranks of karting, Formula BMW, Formula Renault and the Formula 3 Euroseries.

Klien assumes the lead testing role from Anthony Davidson, who has secured a race seat with Super Aguri for next season. The Austrian will join the Honda Racing F1 Team when winter testing gets underway from the end of November. In addition to his regular testing duties, Klien will attend Grand Prix with the team and will be on stand-by if required to substitute for either race driver in a Grand Prix at short notice.

"I would like to welcome Christian to the Honda Racing F1 Team as he takes up his new role as our Test and Reserve Driver," stated Sporting Director Gil de Ferran. "Christian has accumulated a great deal of experience in Formula One over the past three years and this should prove extremely valuable to us given the limitations placed on teams by the new testing regulations. We expect Christian to play an important role in the development of the RA107 and we look forward to working very closely with him in the winter, together with James who steps up to be an official test driver for us."

"On behalf of everyone at the Honda Racing F1 Team, I would like to offer our congratulations to Anthony on his new role at the Super Aguri F1 Team," de Ferran continued. "We are absolutely delighted that Anthony has achieved his long-standing ambition of a Formula One race drive, a role that he certainly deserves. In his six years with our team, Anthony's commitment, loyalty and overall contribution have been crucial to our continued progress and competitiveness. Whilst we are sad to lose such a valuable asset, we wish him all the very best of luck and are pleased to know that he will be remaining within the Honda family."

 

well, racing is always better than testing. i know, SA is a behind the grid team, but, Nick Heidfeld was in a struggling Jordan a few years ago, and look where he ended up now.