• GP2 news

Valsecchi switches to DAMS for 2012

Davide Valsecchi's only win in 2011 came in the Monaco feature race © Sutton Images

Enlarge

Related Links

• Drivers:
• Davide Valsecchi

• Teams:
• DAMS

Davide Valsecchi will drive for DAMS in the 2012 GP2 Series after joining the team from AirAsia.

Valsecchi is entering his fifth season in GP2 having made his debut for Durango in 2008. He's since recorded three victories in the main series, while he was the 2009-10 Asia Series champion driving for iSport.While DAMS driver Romain Grosjean won the 2011 title Valsecchi finished eighth in the championship last season having started strongly, and he said the aim would be to remain at the front throughout the year.

"It's a great honour for me to join the DAMS team," Valsecchi said. "It'll give me the chance to drive a really competitive car and battle with the front-runners on a regular basis. In the light of the team's performance last season I'm convinced that it'll provide me with a first-class single-seater in 2012. So it'll be up to me to give my best to continue its run of successes. I already feel good with the team members, and I'm impatient to start testing to be competitive right from the season's kick-off."

DAMS CEO Jean-Paul Driot described Valsecchi as "one of the benchmarks" and targeted a second successive drivers' championship.

"Personally I'm delighted to welcome Davide to DAMS," Driot said. "His experience and speed should help us to fight at the front. Today, he's one of the benchmarks in GP2 and he'll be the foundation on which we'll build our campaign to defend the drivers' title we won last year."

© ESPN Sports Media Ltd.