Dutch team Spyker have unveiled their 2007 challenger, named the Spyker F8-VII. The car, painted in the traditional Dutch colours of orange, was launched at the Silverstone circuit were the team are based, located in Jordan’s old factory. Alongside Colin Kolles, the team principal, were drivers Adrian Sutil and Christijan Albers. Adrian Sutil was chosen over previous Jordan/Midland/Spyker driver Tiago Monteiro, and the team have high-hopes for the young German – Nico Rosberg has already commented on how good of a competitor he was in previous formulae. The team retain Christijan Albers, who put in some great performances last year in a car that was clearly not that fast. The team are also sporting an extensive testing line up, consisting of Fairuz Fauzy, Adrian Valles, Markus Winkelhock and possibly Giedo van der Garde.
Spyker are seeing this car as a transition to the B-spec car which should be available in the latter part of the 2007 season. The team have limited their testing thus far, instead concentrating on building and developing the new car rather than using an interim car similar to what Super Aguri are currently doing. The team hope the new challenger will push them forward, but with Super Aguri making headway thanks to last years Honda chassis, the competition at the back of the field is going to be tough. Having Mike Gascogne on board will be a boost for the little outfit, and Spyker have been busy making the necessary changes to the team structure that will hopefully see them continue to compete in years to come.
We know that the first half of the season could be challenging for the team, but with the stability that Spyker has brought with it, we’ve got a real direction and focus now. We know that Spyker want to make the project work, and we’ve already set about making changes to turn the team around. One of the first steps was to bring in Mike Gascoyne to lead the technical team and help give the direction we need. Colin Kolles.
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