Stefan Riener to drive for team champions Koiranen GP in 2015

Stefan Riener is about to contest his second Formula Renault season in 2015. The Austrian has joined reigning team champions Koiranen GP and is aiming to build on previous personal successes. Riener has a busy schedule ahead of him in 2015.

The 19-year-old will be an ever-present in Formula Renault 2.0 ALPS, driving on all seven race weekends. The calendar for the international junior series takes contestants to the Formula 1 circuits of Spielberg (Austria), Spa-Francorchamps (Belgium) and Monza (Italy). Riener’s commitment to Koiranen GP also includes three race weekends in the Formula Renault 2.0 Eurocup and three in the Formula Renault 2.0 NEC series.

“Membership of the Koiranen GP squad is a great opportunity for me,” says Riener. “I feel really at home in an environment which manages to be professional and friendly at the same time. I’ve already learnt a great deal during tests with the team. After my first year in Formula Renault, I now want to step up a gear and consistently mix it with the front-runners. Being part of the Koiranen GP setup, I feel well prepared for the upcoming season.”

Riener made a podium appearance in the very first race of his rookie year (2014) in Formula Renault 2.0 ALPS, starting from pole position at Monza, setting the fastest race lap and finishing third. He had his first experience of Koiranen GP in the grand finale of the Formula Renault 2.0 Eurocup at Jerez. His impressive performance persuaded the Finnish team to offer him a guaranteed place on the grid for the 2015 season.

Founded in 1997, the team has a wealth of experience in motorsport, including championship titles in various junior formula series over the past few years. In the 2014 season, Koiranen GP won the driver and team championships in Formula Renault 2.0 ALPS and in the Eurocup Formula Renault 2.0.

Past Koiranen GP protégés include current Formula 1 drivers Valtteri Bottas, Daniil Kvyat and Carlos Sainz Junior. Since 2013, Koiranen GP have also been challengers in GP3, one of the support series to Formula 1.