Arden Motorsport is pleased to confirm Finnish rising star William Alatalo will join the team for the 2021 Formula Regional European Championship by Alpine season. The 18-year-old from Ilmajoki, Finland switches to the Banbury-based team after a positive debut season in the Formula Renault Eurocup, scoring a podium double at Imola en route to third in the Rookie standings.
Prior to that, Alatalo impressed on his rise through the ranks, picking up race victories in Italian and UAE Formula 4 and further podiums in the ADAC German F4 series. That prompted a rise through to the Eurocup – now merged with Formula Regional for 2021 – and a spot on the grid alongside Arden’s Red Arrows. Alatalo showed remarkable consistency, banking points finishes in a highly competitive field at each event and establishing himself amongst the next wave of rising stars coming through the ranks. His team-mates for the season ahead are set to be unveiled in due course.
Garry Horner, Arden Team Principal said: "I’m very pleased to welcome William into the Arden family, and look forward to watching him progress over the course of the Formula Regional European Championship by Alpine season ahead. He’s incredibly quick, with a real maturity to his racecraft, and I’m confident with our track record in developing young drivers, this partnership will help him reach even greater heights on circuit this season. His record in Formula 4 speaks for itself, and he’s already established himself at this level, so the ingredients are all there for a strong season ahead."
Ben Salter, Arden Formula Regional Team Manager said: "It’s fantastic to secure a driver of William’s quality for the 2021 Formula Regional European Championship by Alpine season ahead. We’ve monitored his progress for some time now in the lower categories, particularly Formula 4 where he excelled in three different championships. His debut season in the Eurocup was solid, and showed plenty of promise, and as a team we’re looking forward to working with him to take that next step forward this year. He slots nicely into our line-up alongside Alex, and I’m confident that they – along with our yet-to-be-announced third driver – will put us in a good position for the season ahead."
William Alatalo said: "I’m really looking forward to driving in the Formula Regional European Championship by Alpine next season with Arden Motorsport. As a team, I’m confident we can achieve a lot in the year ahead, and I’m feeling more ready than ever for a fresh challenge with a new team. I’ve been hard at work preparing over the winter break, and I think I’ve already started to gel really well with the team. My goal is plain and simple; to win races. We need to work extremely hard as a team to achieve our goals, but that’s one of the most exciting things for me."