Toro Rosso Confirms 2011 Car Launch for February 1st

Scuderia Toro Rosso is now the second Formula One team to confirm the exact date of their 2011 car launch. According to a media statement released by the Faenza based team earlier today, the next year's car, namely the STR6, will be unveiled to the media on February 1, the very first official day of testing in the FIA calendar.

Late last month, a spokesman for the Italian team confirmed that the car will be up and ready by the time the first official test of the winter kicks off on Valencia's Ricardo Tormo circuit. Today however, it was confirmed that the car will be unveiled a few hours before the cars will take to the track, at approximately 9 AM.

Until now, only Sauber F1 Team issued a similar announcement regarding the launch of their 2011 challenger, confirming their launch date as January 31, also in Valencia.

The majority of the F1 teams will make sure they'll have their cars ready by February 1st, as they need to make the most of the (only) 15 days of testing before the start of the season. While Red Bull gave assurances that, unlike last year, they'll have their car ready by the first test of the winter, Ferrari's Luca di Montezemolo gave the media a one week time zone during which the Scuderia will present their 2011 racer, between January 25 – 31.

As far as Toro Rosso is concerned, the team may have announced its car launch date, but it is yet to confirm the complete drivers lineup for next season. Although it is believed both Jaime Alguersuari and Sebastien Buemi are to retain their seats for 2011, the official FIA entry list still shows vacancy for the two STR spots.

An announcement on the lineup will probably be made by Christmas. The only confirmed driver for the Italian squad is Friday tester/reserve Daniel Ricciardo.