The Italian based Gillman Racing team has announced that the Finnish racer Filip Roms has joined them for the F1H2O 2022 season, this will be the twenty-eight-year-old from Espoo, Finland tenth year in the World Championship.
Prior to joining up with Scott Gillman’s team, Roms spent the past nine seasons with fellow Finn Sami Selio when he joined the series as an eighteen-year-old finishing his debut season in twelfth place in the standings.
The four-time World Champion Scott Gillman said.
We are excited about having Roms joining our team. He is now truly a veteran driver who can only help our young driver Alec Weckstrom who I believe has both the pedigree and talent to go a long way in this sport. Knowing Roms as I do, he can add so much to this operation in 2022.
Gillman added with a laugh,
Well, now with two Finnish drivers in the team, I’m going to have to be forced into taking a lot of saunas when relaxing and watch a whole lot of Ice Hockey if I want to become part of conversations with my drivers when it’s not centred around powerboat racing.
Back in 2012 when Roms joined the F1H2O World Championship he became the youngest ever driver to do so and then went onto become the youngest one to score points. Three years later he would become the youngest driver to earn a top-three podium finish at the French Grand Prix held in Evian, out racing World Champion Alex Carella in the process. One year later he once again finished on the podium in Evian, this time it was Shaun Torrente that was filling his mirrors as Roms crossed the line in second place.
Even though the French Grand Prix has now moved from Evian to Macon Val de Saone, Roms will be hoping that he can make it a ‘hat-trick’ of podium visits come Sunday afternoon.
The first action on the 1500 metre Macon circuit takes place on Friday with an extra free practice session at 16.00 (local time). A second practice session on Saturday morning is followed by Official Qualifying at 15:00, with the final practice session on Sunday morning and the UIM F1H2O Grand Prix of France at 16:00.
Images by Chris Davies/PRW & Xavier Bertin Racing Images.
