Ken Block to get a taste of Formula 1 power at Monza

Ken Block

One thing the springs to mind when you here the name Ken Block is of course lots of tire smoke, dirt, a screaming engine and videos on Youtube which all have one thing in common, a banner which says, ‘don’t try this at home’. Ken Block, the man associated with driving cars by looking out of the side window will now get to taste the power of a Formula 1 car. I hope he has been briefed about the machine he is about to place his bottom in because, this ain’t got a side window nor does it have a a windshield.

Ken Block’s tire partner, Pirelli has invited him to the legendary race track of Monza in Italy. This year Block has been racing in the premier rallying circuit of WRC and ahead of Rally Deutschland , the American will get to test Formula 1 tire compounds at Monza. Pirelli, the current official Formula 1 tire supplier tests their compounds on a 700 bhp Toyota FT109. This is the car that Block will get to lay his hands on. The other Pirelli test drivers who have been in this seat before are Nick Heidfeld, Pedro de la Rosa and Lucas di Grassi who is the current development driver for Pirelli.

Ken Block's Ford Fiesta WRC car

Ken Block is very excited and is looking forward to the day. He thinks, this is now where close to the daredevil stunts he performs in his Ford Fiesta WRC car in fact, this is going to be a totally different experience. Rally drivers are known to try out Formula 1 cars. Earlier, Tommi Makinen had tested a Williams while the late Colin McRae once tested a Jordan. Current WRC Champion, Sebastien Loeb too has had a go in a RedBull F1 car in Barcelona. Kenny will surely like to add his name to the name of elite rally drivers who have tried out a F1 car.

“I’ve been lucky enough to do some pretty spectacular stunts in my career so far, but this is something else!” said the 43-year-old. “Everybody talks about Formula One being the pinnacle of world motorsport so I can’t wait to discover it for myself. I’m very grateful to Pirelli, which has been one of my partners since 2010, for this amazing opportunity. These cars are so specialised that I need to be realistic about what I can do, but I know that it’s going to be a lot of fun and take hooning to a whole new level…”

“We’re absolutely delighted that Ken is making his Formula One driving debut with us, and where better than Monza?” said Pirelli’s motorsport boss Paul Hembery. “I hope that he thoroughly enjoys the experience of driving these awesome cars. We got to know Ken through our partnership with the Gymkhana programme and the World Rally Championship last year, where he impressed us with his dedicated approach, his technical feedback and his unique way of marketing the sport.”

Via WRC

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