Caterham F1 development racer Weiron Tan will move up to the German Formula 3 Cup this season with van Amersfoort Racing.
The Malaysian progresses to the national Formula 3 series, following a successful stint in the Protyre Formula Renault Championship in the UK, that saw Tan claim five wins and the runner-up spot behind champion Chris Middlehurst.
Hailing from Kuala Lumpur, Tan has previously competed in the (now defunct) JK Asia Racing Series and Formula Gulf 1000, enjoying reasonably solid results to both, prior to his move to the UK.
Now with European competition on the horizon, Tan will be looking to build on his 2013 successes; however he remains wary of the road ahead. “I think the first two race weekends are going to be key and will undoubtedly dictate the season,” said Tan. “I am going to work as hard as I can over the off-season to make sure I am fully ready to go so we can be as competitive as possible right from the start.”
Having tested with the team at the end of last year, Van Amersfoort’s racing engineer Gerben van der Lei noted: “Ordinarily, drivers who transition from Formula Renault to Formula 3 find it difficult to comprehend just how much aerodynamic grip is available to them and spend a lot of time trying to master high-speed, high-commitment corners.”
Van der Lei added, “What most impressed me was his ability to find the car’s limit in all the high-commitment corners within a very small period of time.”
Tan’s addition to the Dutch team means he is the fourth driver to sign up for this year’s German F3 Cup and while more are expected to join the 19-year-old in competition, 2014 may still be something of lean year for the series.
