McLaren has announced that 20-year-old Dutch driver Giedo van der Garde will join reigning Champions ASM for the 2006 F3 Euroseries season.

Giedo, who has raced for the past two seasons in the series, has also become the latest recruit to the McLaren and Mercedes-Benz Young Driver Support Programme on an on-going basis.

"I am really excited to have joined both ASM and the McLaren and Mercedes-Benz Young Driver Support Programme for 2006," said Giedo. "To be racing with the current Champions in the F3 Euroseries and a team of the calibre of ASM is fantastic and I am looking forward to a competitive season. In addition, to be a member of the McLaren and Mercedes-Benz Young Driver Support Programme is a great opportunity for me at this stage of my career and I aim to make the most of it that I can."

"I'm delighted that Giedo, who has strong experience in the F3 Euroseries, has joined our team," added Frederic Vasseur, Team Principal, ASM. "I'm proud to have the confidence from Giedo, his partners, McLaren and Mercedes-Benz. Our target will be to retain both the Driver and Constructor titles and for sure Giedo will be an excellent member of ASM."

"We are pleased to welcome Giedo to the McLaren and Mercedes-Benz Young Driver Support Programme," commented Martin Whitmarsh, CEO Formula One, Team McLaren Mercedes. "Giedo is a promising young driver, and we are looking forward to working with him to maximise this potential. We feel that by placing Giedo with the ASM team for 2006, he has the best opportunity to develop and demonstrate his talents."

"Mercedes-Benz has a long history of supporting young talents in motor racing," said Norbert Haug, Vice President, Mercedes-Benz Motorsport. "We are happy to support Guido in the 2006 Formula 3 Euroseries together with the experienced team ASM which will run our Mercedes-Benz M271 engine. He has already gathered some experience in the Formula 3 Euroseries and should be in good shape for results in 2006."