Photo: Protyre Formula Renault
18-year-old karting graduate Niklas Tiihonen has announced his participation in the 2014 Protyre Formula Renault season.
Not committing himself to any of the established teams, Tiihonen will enter the series as a privateer.
Tiihonen enjoyed a successful karting career, as he impressed in both national-level competitions, securing the Finnish KF3 championship title, and international tournaments, winning the CIK-FIA Karting Academy Trophy.
“I see Protyre Formula Renault as a good step in my career”, said Tiihonen, “This is going to be my first year in single-seaters so I?m really excited and really looking forward to it. I want to gain a lot of experience and take in a lot of information but I?m not pressuring myself too much.”
“I will put myself outside my comfort zone, though, and do my best. I?m really thankful to all of my sponsors who have given me this fantastic opportunity and I can?t wait until the first round, it should be a great year.”
“While the professional teams in Protyre Formula Renault are the bedrock of the championship, privateer entrants like Niklas are an absolutely vital part of what the category is all about.” added series promoter Simon North. “His involvement in the championship and desire to come and race in the UK speaks volumes about the series? status.”
Tiihonen is the tenth addition to the field, which already includes British karting champion Alex Gill, British F3 race-winner Rupert Svendsen-Cook’s mentee Tarun Reddy and grandson of former Formula 1 world champion, Pietro Fittipaldi.
2014 Protyre Formula Renault 2.0 line-up so far
| Team | Drivers |
| Cliff Dempsey Racing | TJ Fischer, Patrick Dussault |
| Fortec Motorsports | Alex Gill |
| Hillspeed | Dimitris Papanastasiou |
| MGR Motorsport | Pietro Fittipaldi, Matteo Ferrer, Tarun Reddy, Colin Noble |
| SWB Motorsport | Jack Butel |
| Privateer entry | Niklas Tiihonen |