The Honda Racing F1 Team will give 2008 GP2 Series title contender Bruno Senna his first experience of a Formula One car in Barcelona later this month.

Bruno will attend the team’s first winter test at the Circuit de Catalunya from Monday 17 to Wednesday 19 November where he will drive the Honda RA108 to enable the team to assess how Bruno has developed in his career to date.

The programme for Bruno will include an initial familiarisation with the car and its systems before progressing to a full programme during which the team will be evaluating his performance, technical skill and ability to work with a large team organisation.

Bruno, 25, has impressed in the British F3 Championship and GP2 since his first full season in junior motorsport formulae in 2005. He won two GP2 races in 2008 and finished second in the Series.

Ross Brawn, Team Principal of the Honda Racing F1 Team, said: “We are delighted to provide Bruno with the opportunity to test for us later this month as we continue to explore all the driver options available to us for next season. After an impressive year in GP2 this will be a chance for Bruno to prove that he is ready to make the step up to Formula One. Our objective is to have the best drivers available to us next season and our evaluation of Bruno’s performance will be rigorous. We are looking forward to seeing how he performs. Over the next two weeks Bruno will be spending a lot of time with us at our Brackley base, working closely with our engineers and on the simulator to ensure he is fully prepared for this important test.”

Bruno Senna said: “I am obviously very excited about being given my first Formula One test and to have that opportunity with Honda is a dream come true. Although I am still only in my fourth year of motor racing, I have wanted to test an F1 car for a very long time and I feel that I am ready for that challenge. I have already spent some time at the factory in Brackley and have enjoyed meeting the team and working with the engineers to prepare for this test. Everyone has been very supportive and it is particularly special for me to have the chance to work with Ross Brawn. I’m excited about getting in the car in two weeks’ time but I know this is a big opportunity so I want to learn as much as I can before I get to Barcelona. I hope to show the team what I can do, so it’s up to me now to do a good job.”