Alan van der Merwe (born 31 January 1980) is a South African former racing driver. From to , van der Merwe served as the driver in Formula One.
Racing career Van der Merwe won the 2001 Formula Ford Festival. In 2003, he was the British Formula 3 Champion, and drove for Super Nova Racing in Formula 3000 in 2004. His sponsorship money ran out mid-season and he took a contract as a part-time tester for BAR–Honda.
In 2005 and 2006, van der Merwe raced in the A1 Grand Prix series for A1 Team South Africa, with a best placed finish of 7th in New Zealand. In 2006, he joined the Bonneville 200 MPH Club, driving a modified BAR–Honda 007 car to speeds in excess of for their Bonneville 400 project; an attempt to set an official land speed record for a Formula One car on the famous Bonneville Salt Flats. In 2008, he drove for James Watt Automotive in the 1000 km of Silverstone, part of the 2008 Le Mans Series, finishing in 33rd place and completing 159 laps. He returned to A1 Grand Prix in 2009 in the final round at Brands Hatch.
FIA role Van der Merwe was the official driver of the FIA medical car in Formula One events from 2009 until the end of the 2021 season, when he was replaced due to his refusal to be vaccinated against COVID-19.
Racing record Season Series Team name Races Poles Wins Points Position 2001 Formula Ford Festival Haywood Racing 1 0 1 NC 1st British Formula Ford Championship 14 2 1 ? 2nd 2002 British Formula 3 Carlin Motorsport 30 0 1 98 8th 2003 British Formula 3 Carlin Motorsport 24 5 9 308 1st 2004 Formula 3000 Super Nova Racing 7 0 0 2 14th 2005 Formula One BAR Test driver 2006–07 A1 Grand Prix A1 Team South Africa 8 0 0 24 14th 2008 Le Mans Series James Watt Automotive 1 0 0 2 37th 2008–09 A1 Grand Prix A1 Team South Africa 2 0 0 19 14thSource:
Complete International Formula 3000 results (key) (Races in bold indicate pole position; races in italics indicate fastest lap.) Year Entrant 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 DC Points Ref 2004 Super Nova Racing IMO CAT MON NUR MAG SIL HOC HUN SPA MNZ 14th 2
Complete A1 Grand Prix results (key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap) Year Entrant 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 DC Points Ref 2006–07 A1 Team South Africa NEDSPR NEDFEA CZESPR CZEFEA BEISPR BEIFEA MYSSPR MYSFEA IDNSPR IDNFEA NZLSPR NZLFEA AUSSPR AUSFEA RSASPR RSAFEA MEXSPR MEXFEA SHASPR SHAFEA GBRSPR GBRSPR 14th 24 2008–09 NEDSPR NEDFEA CHNSPR CHNFEA MYSSPR MYSFEA NZLSPR NZLFEA RSASPR RSAFEA PORSPR PORFEA GBRSPR GBRSPR14th19
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