After a five-month break, the FIA Formula One World Championship swings back into action with the first race of the 2007 season, the Australian Grand Prix. The Spyker Formula One Team goes to the opening race in buoyant mood, after the new driver line-up, chassis and engine proved to be an efficient and reliable package in pre-season testing.
The Australian Grand Prix will mark the race debut of the new Spyker F8-VII, which completed over 6,000km in its pre-season testing programme without any major problems. While the team has realistic expectations of performance relative to the rest of the field, there is every reason to be optimistic for the coming season. With significant aerodynamic updates planned from the second race of the season, the team aims to make steady, but measurable progress, from Australia onwards.
Christijan Albers remains with the team for a second season to give stability and consistency in development and is joined by Grand Prix novice Adrian Sutil, from Germany. With three Friday drives behind him last season, Adrian has continued to equip himself well for his Grand Prix debut by accumulating over 2,400 kilometres in pre-season testing.
Christijan and Adrian are joined this year by a quartet of test drivers; Fairuz Fauzy from Malaysia, Dutchman Giedo van der Garde, Adrian Valles from Spain and Germany’s Markus Winkelhock. This time out in Australia, Markus will be the team’s reserve driver after getting his first taste of the F8-VII at a final shakedown in Silverstone on Tuesday 6 March.
| 
|