Sauber clinch de la Rosa deal

(GETTY IMAGES)

BMW Sauber have confirmed Pedro de la Rosa as their second driver for the 2010 Formula One World Championship.

The 38-year-old Spaniard has not started a Grand Prix for three years, his last race was for McLaren at the 2006 Brazilian Grand Prix, but will join .Japan's Kamui Kobayashi on the Swiss team's driving strength.

And team principal Peter Sauber hopes De la Rosa's experience will benefit his team.

He said: "Pedro has spent many years working for a top team at the highest technical level."

"We as a team stand to gain from his experience, and the same goes for young Kamui. The combination of a seasoned racer and an up-and-coming young driver has repeatedly proved a very fruitful one. I don't expect either of them to disappoint in 2010."

De la Rosa started his Formula One career with Arrows before moving to Jaguar. He joined McLaren at the end of the 2002 season as their test and reserve driver and started nine races for the team as a replacement for Juan Pablo Montoya, filling in when the Colombian missed the 2005 Bahrain Grand Prix through injury and when he left the team halfway through the following season.

De la Rosa insists he always thought he would secure another race seat in Formula One:

"I always firmly believed I would be given another chance as a team driver," he said. "

Since the number of test drives were radically reduced, this was what I was working towards. I'm really excited about the season with Peter Sauber's team, which has been a solid fixture in Formula One ever since 1993."