US F1 Gets 2 Extra Testing Days Prior to 2010 Season

We've already reported to you that US F1 team has received dispensation from the International Automobile Federation (FIA) to debut their 2010 challenger in the United States. Due to geographic reasons – the Charlotte-based team is the only one located outside Europe from all current F1 outfits – Peter Windsor's and Ken Anderson's organization was granted permission to conduct testing on their car on home soil.

However, at the time, it wasn't clear enough whether the team will also receive some extra days of testing prior to the start of the 2010 Formula One season, as compared to the other new teams in the F1 roster.

Apparently, as disclosed by Windsor in an interview with Autosport, US F1 will benefit from an extra 2 days of straight line testing prior to the mid-March Bahrain Grand Prix. According to the current FIA rules, the F1 teams are only allowed to do 4 straight line tests a year, whereas US F1 were handed 6.

“We have been given special dispensation to have six straight line/full-scale tunnel days, rather than the four to which all the other teams are limited. It is an example of how the FIA and the teams have gone out of their way to make us feel welcome,” said Windsor to the aforementioned publication, prior to announcing John Anderson as the team's new team manager for the 2010 season.

In a recent interview with Formula One's official site, the same Windsor revealed that his team will have its car ready by the early days of February, when the 2010 challenger will be debuted on the Barber Motorsport Park track in Alabama.

So now we know that everything is on schedule for a car test in early February, but we're yet to find out who'll get to drive it. No news coming from US F1 on the drivers' lineup just yet, but an announcement is expected within the next couple of weeks. As revealed by Windsor, the team will likely debut two rookie drivers in 2010.