German outfit Hilmer Motorsport will join the GP2 field in 2013, filling the void left by Ocean Racing Technology.
German team fill void left by Ocean Racing Technology
German outfit Hilmer Motorsport will join the GP2 field in 2013, filling the void left by Ocean Racing Technology.
That means a full grid of 26 cars will once again support 11 rounds of the Formula 1 World Championship, giving fans a chance to see the next generation of drivers in action.
Former F1 driver Tiago Monteiro's Ocean team were forced to withdraw from both the GP2 and GP3 Championships after running into financial difficulties.
"I am pleased to welcome Hilmer Motorsport to our category," GP2 Series CEO Bruno Michel said.
"It is the first time since the Series' inception that we will have a German team in our field. They are already hard at work to be ready and competitive from the first pre-season test session next month in Jerez. I am sure that they will be a great addition to our grid.
"I would like to thank Tiago Monteiro and everyone involved in his team for their work and dedication for the past four seasons."
Hilmer Motorsport Team Principal Franz Hilmer added: "We are delighted that Hilmer Motorsport will participate to the prestigious GP2 Series. I would like to thank Bruno Michel for his support. We are currently working on putting together a strong team of highly experienced professionals in order to be ready for the first challenge of the season."
Ocean bosses Monteiro and Jose Guedes have not ruled out returning to the Series in the future, but have wished Hilmer success with their entry.
"We are sad to announce that our team was forced to stop its activity in GP2 and GP3 due to financial difficulties caused by the lack of payment from our partners Parkalgar and the Portuguese Government," they said.
"We enjoyed the short time we were in both Series', we had a great time with success achieving wins and podiums, but unfortunately we cannot sustain our activity in these conditions. We sure hope to be back once these problems are solved, and in the meantime we wish a successful experience to Hilmer Motorsport and a great season to GP2 and our competitors.
"We want to thank everyone for their support during those four years: fans, friends, employees, GP2, drivers and competitors."
