Renault F1 snap up young British racing star Oliver Rowland as new development driver

THE Renault F1 team have snapped up young British racing driver Oliver Rowland as their development driver.

The 24-year-old will compete in the Formula 2 series this weekend in Bahrain, on the undercard of the main F1 event.

Rowland is looking to win the second-tier title and earn a spot in the elite division.

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If the Sheffield racer impresses in F2, then he hopes to be given a shot during the young driver F1 testing days later in the year.

"I will be doing development work and simulator work with Renault and hopefully I will do some testing for them too," Rowland said.

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"I hope that if I do a good job in the Formula 2 series, then they will reward me with that.

"The series used to be called GP2 and is a proven breeding ground.

"Lewis Hamilton, Nico Rosberg , Nico Hulkenberg, Romain Grosjean and Jolyon Palmer have all been previous champions.

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"It is the place to learn your trade in front of F1 teams.

"That is the plan and there is no reason why we cannot challenge for the championship and then look for an F1 seat in the 2018 season."

Barnsley fan Rowland hopes to follow in the footsteps of Palmer, who had a similar role with the team under their previous guise as Lotus in 2015.