Mauricio to get Red Bull IRL test.
Leading Indy Racing League outfit Red Bull Cheever Racing will test 23-year-old Brazilian Ricardo Mauricio at Kentucky Speedway on Thursday following the closure of Dr Helmut Marko's Red Bull Junior FIA International Formula 3000 team.
Mauricio has driven in the FIA International Formula 3000 series for the Red Bull Junior Team since 1999 but has failed to register the results expected. After another disappointing year in 2002, Marko decided to close the team's doors.
Leading Indy Racing League outfit Red Bull Cheever Racing will test 23-year-old Brazilian Ricardo Mauricio at Kentucky Speedway on Thursday following the closure of Dr Helmut Marko's Red Bull Junior FIA International Formula 3000 team.
Mauricio has driven in the FIA International Formula 3000 series for the Red Bull Junior Team since 1999 but has failed to register the results expected. After another disappointing year in 2002, Marko decided to close the team's doors.
"It is fitting that on the same day that Red Bull will announce the candidates for its U.S. Formula One driver search, we will be in Kentucky testing a young Brazilian driver that Red Bull introduced to us," said team owner and driver Eddie Cheever Jr.
"Red Bull is dedicated to developing young drivers around the world, and we are pleased to be a part of this effort."
Mauricio, of Sao Paulo, will get his first oval track driving experience in the No. 51 Red Bull Cheever Racing Infiniti-powered Dallara. Buddy Rice will also drive at the test, focusing on development work for the 2003 Indy Racing League Championship.
Although Mauricio is still a highly touted talent, it appears that his chances of a drive with RBTC in 2003 rest with Cheever's decision whether or not to continue driving himself.
