Sebastien Buemi will reportedly become Red Bull‘s official reserve driver at grands prix during the 2012 Formula 1 season.
After three full seasons with the energy drink company’s Italian rookie team Toro Rosso, the 23-year-old Swiss – like his teammate Jaime Alguersuari – lost his race seat ahead of the 2012 season.
But veteran journalist Roger Benoit, writing in the Swiss newspaper Blick, reports that Buemi will at least remain in the paddock this year, as Red Bull’s new reserve driver.
He will be ready to substitute not only for Toro Rosso’s newcomers Daniel Ricciardo and Jean-Eric Vergne, but also if need be for world champion Sebastian Vettel or his Red Bull Racing teammate Mark Webber, Benoit said.
“No one wants to say if the contract has been signed yet or not,” he added. “But for the driver from Vaud, it is the best solution to at least stay in the paddock.”
The Red Bull website features Buemi and describes him as: “Sébastien has the rare distinction of drivers’ titles in two different elite level FIA series including three full F1 seasons with Scuderia Toro Rosso in Formula One.
“The lessons learned earned him a F1 drive with Toro Rosso for 2009 and over three seasons with the Team he’d race 55 times, scoring 29 points overall from 15 top-10 finishes. With a wealth of F1 experience at his disposal, the decision to bring him to Red Bull Racing in a Test and Reserve capacity for 2012 was straightforward.”