De Silvestro's F1 race chance '1 per cent'

Can the Swiss driver make it to the starting grid of a Formula One race

Mar.26 (GMM) Simone de Silvestro rates her chances of joining the Grand Prix grid in 2015 with Sauber as "good".

Last month, the Swiss team signed up the 25-year-old Indycar driver, nominating her as "an affiliated driver" of the Hinwil based outfit.

Sauber's February statement said de Silvestro will undertake "on track testing, simulator training, as well as mental and physical preparation", with the goal being "to gain her super license and prepare for a race seat in Formula One for 2015".

The Swiss newspaper Blick said de Silvestro, from Thun in Switzerland, is set to make her F1 test debut at the end of April.

She said this week: "Formula one has always been my dream."

Simona de Silvestro, HVM Racing Technology Chevrolet

Photo by: Chris Jones

Asked how realistic that dream is, she answered: "If I do everything right, there is a good chance I will get there at some point."

However, given the current nature of midfield F1, de Silvestro must be considered third in line at Sauber, behind the well-sponsored reserve driver Giedo van der Garde and the 'Russian rescue deal'-linked Sergey Sirotkin.

Veteran Blick correspondent Roger Benoit said: "The chance that de Silvestro will ever race for Sauber in Formula One is about one per cent."