Formula 2 race winner Alex Fontana will switch to the GP3 Series full-time with Jenzer Motorsport this year. The 20-year-old Swiss was named as part of the Lotus F1 Junior Team on Friday, and moves into the grand prix support series.
Fontana, who won the European F3 Open title in 2011 before switching to F2, has made a handful of GP3 starts for Jenzer over the past two years. In 2012 he contested the Hungaroring and Spa rounds of GP3, taking a best finish of fourth at the latter event.
"This year the cars have changed slightly and will have a bit more power so it's not going to be an easy transition, but my aim is to prove my ability over the course of the season and hopefully move on to the GP2 Series or Formula Renault 3.5 next year," Fontana said. "If you want to get into Formula 1, then these are the ideal steppingstones to the top level."
Rival team ART Grand Prix, which won last year's GP3 teams' title under the Lotus GP banner, has signed Argentinean Facu Regalia to partner British F3 champion Jack Harvey.
Regalia made four appearances for Atech CRS in GP3 last year, was a podium finisher in Auto GP and won three times on his way to fourth in the European F3 Open standings.
2013 GP3 Series lineup so far:
Lotus (ART) Jack Harvey Facu Regalia TBA
MW Arden Daniil Kvyat Carlos Sainz Jr Robert Visoiu
Carlin Eric Lichtenstein Luis Sa Silva TBA
Jenzer Patric Niederhauser Alex Fontana TBA
Manor TBA TBA TBA
Status Jimmy Eriksson TBA TBA
Atech CRS TBA TBA TBA
Trident Emanuele Zonzini David Fumanelli TBA
Koiranen Kevin Korjus Aaro Vainio Patrick Kujala