Van Amersfoort Racing have confirmed that Jake Hughes will drive for the team in their inaugural F2 campaign in 2022.
Van Amersfoort Racing (VAR) will replace HWA Racelab who departed the series at end of 2021 season and have confirmed HWA Racelab’s former stand-in driver, Jake Hughes as the first full-time driver for their inaugural F2 campaign.
Speaking about his full-time step up to F2 after a positive post-season test last month, Hughes said that he is “overly excited” to make the permanent step up after scoring his first points in F2 in last season’s Russian Sprint Race in Sochi, Russia.
Hughes went on to finish the season in Abu Dhabi with HWA Racelab before conducting post-season testing for VAR, which impressed the 27 year-old as he commented: “During the post-season test at Abu-Dhabi it became clear to me that VAR takes this new challenge extremely serious.
“We are very much on the same level when it comes to vision and drive for success, making it a very pleasant environment to work in. I’m just very thankful to the team for putting their trust in me and providing the opportunity to work together.”
Hughes also noted how “incredibly tough” it is to drive the Dallara F2 2018 car but is excited to conduct a full season in the car, although he iterated that it will still be tough as he added: “It will be a long and tough stretch, but I am eager to kick off the season soon in Bahrain!”
VAR CEO, Rob Niessink is “extremely happy” to have signed Hughes for the Dutch team’s maiden F2 season as he explained the decision behind Hughes’ appointment as their first driver, adding: “We are standing on the brink of a great adventure for which we very much welcome the experience and maturity that Jake brings along.”
Niessink also praised Hughes for his work in post-season testing, as he commented: “During the post-season test at the Yas Marina Circuit in Abu Dhabi, Jake showed to be a highly motivated and professional team player.
“Jake’s accurate input and feedback already made an impact during testing, which helped the team to progress already in a very short time. His drive and dedication match ours, giving us great confidence for the season ahead!”
The 2022 F2 campaign will see the series return to a two-race weekend format which kicks off in Bahrain on weekend of 18-19 March, before climaxing in Abu Dhabi across weekend of 18-20 November after a record 14 rounds across Europe and Middle East.
Hughes’ home round will take place across 1-3 July at Silverstone, UK, whilst VAR’s first home round as a F2 team will take place at Zandvoort, Netherlands across weekend of 2-4 September.
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