French driver Clement Novalak is switching from MP Motorsport to Trident Racing ahead of the 2023 Formula 2 season.
Trident have announced their first driver of the 2023 season in Clement Novalak. The twenty-one-year-old French driver made his Formula 2 debut in 2021 racing for MP Motorsport for six races. After an unsuccessful 2022 season with MP Motorsport, Novalak has opted to return to Trident – where he finished third with the team during the 2021 Formula 3 Championship. He is the sixth driver to be confirmed for next season’s F2 grid.
Novalak’s 21/22 Formula 2 season
After claiming third place in the 2021 Formula 3 championship, Novalak made his Formula 2 debut in November, during the last two rounds of the 2021 campaign. Replacing Lirim Zendeli, due to financial reasons, at MP Motorsport, Novalak failed to reach the points during his guest appearance.
However, MP Motorsport were clearly impressed with him and announced that Novalak would be racing full-time with them for the 2022 season. Teaming up alongside Felipe Drugovich, Novalak struggled to match his teammate and finished the season fourteenth in the championship, with one podium, compared to Drugovich who won the title in a dominant fashion.
Guess who's back? We are happy to welcome @ClementNovalak to our @Formula2 2023 team! 🤍🔱 #driverannouncement #clementnovalak #formula2 #tridentteam #tridentmotorsport pic.twitter.com/FRjlYyITUP
— Trident Team (@trident_team) November 22, 2022
Following the announcement, Novalak stated:
“I’m extremely happy to be heading back to Trident. We had an amazing partnership together in 2021 and I’m very proud to be wearing their colours again. I’d like to thank Mr. Salvadori for the trust and I’m hoping we can have an amazing 2023 full of success.”
Giacomo Ricci (Team Principal for Trident) added:
“We are proud to welcome Clément Novalak back to our family. He is a driver with undeniable and undisputed value who did really well with Trident Motorsport in Formula 3 and achieving the third position in 2021 Championship. Novalak brings a year of experience with him in Formula 2 and I’m sure he will be able to make an important contribution to the team.”
2023 Drivers Lineup:
Despite MP Motorsport claiming the Teams Championship during the last round in Abu Dhabi, Novalak has decided to join a team that finished ninth in the standings. However, considering his history with the team will he be able to bring them back to winning ways?
- Campos Racing: Ralph Boschung & TBD
- DAMS Racing: Arthur Leclerc & TBD
- MP Motorsport: Dennis Hauger & TBD
- PREMA Powerteam: Oliver Bearman & Frederick Vesti
- Trident Racing: Clement Novalak & TBD
As drivers and teams continued to be announced, we will expand the table.
