Julian Leal joins Rapax in 2011 GP2 Series

The Rapax team is proud to announce the deal reached with Julian Leal, who’ll continue partnering Fabio Leimer for the upcoming GP2 Series.

The 20-year-old Colombian race made his debut with Rapax in the Asia Series championship, aboard the new GP2 racecar fitted with Pirelli tires. Despite the initial adaptation issues of such a tough category like GP2, he proved really consistent at his first run, and both parties were extremely positive about how the relationship started.

The agreement reached to continue through the 2011 GP2 Series has been an obvious step forward from that. Leal will be lined-up with Leimer, a 21-year-old Swiss racer who previously joined the team for a full season. The Leal-Leimer combination is one of the youngest in GP2, confirming the attention of Rapax towards the best young drivers in racing.

Julian Leal: "Before entering the GP2 Asia Series, I hadn’t decided to continue in the championship and enter the GP2 Main Series. The first contact with the team proved key in my decision, as I fell in love with the car at the first testing occasion we had last November. I found out that it’s a complete and valuable race car that provides a great stepping stone for F1. I experienced a great relationship with the Rapax team since the first moment. I’m sure that the team’s technical staff and personnel will be able to help me grow up and achieve some valuable results. At Abu Dhabi I also established a great connection with my team-mate Fabio Leimer, and I feel that we will have chances to do great things together. I know that this will be a really demanding season, but I’m ready to focus 100% to take full advantage of this opportunity, for which I want to thank my father and family, my sponsors and my management".

Andrea Bergamini, Managing Director: “We’re extremely happy to continue in the collaboration we started with Julian for in the GP2 Main Series too. His approach to the first round of the season at Abu Dhabi proved extremely professional, despite some unfortunate coincidences preventing him from scoring some well-deserved top-notch results. We’re proud to contribute to his growth, and at the same time we’re extremely pleased to have two young and talented drivers with us. They’re a further proof of our commitment in supporting young and talented racers aiming to reach the top in motorsports".