Billy Monger, Sauber, C30, 2011

Billy Monger given surprise test in Sauber F1 car

2018 F1 season

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British F3 racer Billy Monger has been given a surprise test in a Formula 1 car built by Sauber at the Rockingham circuit today.

Monger, who lost parts of both legs in a Formula Four crash last year, was unaware of the test which has been arranged by historic F1 car supplier Heritage F1.

The 19-year-old discovered this morning he will drive a 2011-specification Sauber C30 on the Rockingham Sports Car course where he has already raced earlier this year.

The car has been adapted with hand controls to allow Monger to operate it. One of the clutch paddles on the steering wheel has been replaced with a throttle.

Monger is having a seat fitting at the circuit in the car, whose modifications have already been track-tested. He is expected to have his first run in the car this afternoon.

The Sauber C30 was raced by Sergio Perez, Kamui Kobayashi and Pedro de la Rosa in the 2011 F1 season.

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Keith Collantine
Lifelong motor sport fan Keith set up RaceFans in 2005 - when it was originally called F1 Fanatic. Having previously worked as a motoring...

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22 comments on “Billy Monger given surprise test in Sauber F1 car”

  1. ”One of the clutch paddles on the steering wheel has been replaced with a throttle.”
    – How is that possible, LOL?

    1. Humm, why shouldn’t it be possible?

    2. They’ll have switched to a single clutch paddle

    3. never ridden a bike before?

    4. If they wanted to they could replace everything with an Xbox One controller and operate the car from the garage like a radio-controlled car.

      1. @jeffreyj – LOL.
        @kog – Yes, I have.

    5. Duncan Snowden
      26th June 2018, 13:58

      Peter Windsor had an interview with Billy the other day where he explained how he sets up his controls. I don’t have a link to hand, but it’ll be on Peter’s YouTube channel.

    6. Since everything is electronics, it is not that hard to do really @jerejj, although it probably means that it is harder to get a feel for the throttle pedal, but that is something Billy seems to have gotten used to right away.

      1. petebaldwin (@)
        26th June 2018, 22:28

        It’s pretty amazing how quickly he’s progressed. It was only April 2017 that he had his crash… In 13 months, he’s recovered from a double amputation, learnt to walk on prosthetic legs, learnt to drive a racing car with hand throttle controls, moved up from F4 to F3 and finished on the podium in his first race back and is now going to drive a 2011 F1 car.

        He’s a seriously impressive kid.

        1. Truly inspirational!

          Nice to see some good news everyone can enjoy!

    7. There have even been quadriplegic (paralyzed from neck down) drivers driving gt cars in some events. It is not uncommon at all to have drivers who have lost their feet driving in various categories and if you google it you’ll find lots of people who have done it on amateur and professional level. F1 car is probably more challenging than some other cars simply because there is so little space but there have been lots of drivers in smaller race series. I mean he already raced in f3 so very similar system would work in f1…

    8. It’s called ‘engineering’ – LOL

  2. So cool! Hard to believe it was a true surprise but either way I’m sure he’s ecstatic!

  3. Brilliant …. go Billy go

  4. Nice touch Sauber!

    1. And the last Sauber worth driving! Lol

      1. Leclerc may disagree with you.

      2. The C32 was probably the last truly competitive Sauber…at least in Hulkenberg’s hands.

    2. petebaldwin (@)
      26th June 2018, 22:29

      It’s not Sauber, it’s these guys: http://www.heritage-f1.com/

      1. petebaldwin (@)
        26th June 2018, 22:34

        On a side note, if you have a spare £500k in the bank and need a car for the family, here is a nice option. It seats 3 – perfect for the early morning school run…. Need some space to store your bags but fed up with the lack of storage options with most F1 cars? This is the car for you!

        http://www.heritage-f1.com/cars/2001-arrows-ax3/

  5. Didn’t they do the same for Zanardi as well ??

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