- Formula One - 2012As revealed earlier this week, Scuderia Toro Rosso have named DanielRicciardo and Jean-Eric Vergne as their drivers for the 2012 season, thefirst time two Formula Renault 3.5 Series rivals will be driving side byside for the same Formula One team. In taking the step up from the FormulaRenault 3.5 Series to motor racing's blue riband class, the Australian andthe Frenchman are following the trail blazed by Robert Kubica, SebastienVettel and Jaime Alguersuari. Their promotion takes the number of drivers inthe 2012 Formula One field who have earned their spurs in the World Seriesby Renault's leading class to five, with world champion Vettel, PastorMaldonado and Charles Pic the other members of that esteemed quintet.The driver development programme put in place by Renault Sport Technologiescontinues to go from strength to strength, with the recent arrivals ofCharles Pic, Romain Grosjean, Jean-Eric Vergne and Daniel Ricciardo inFormula One cementing World Series by Renault's reputation as thespringboard for reaching motor racing's top table. All four made theirbreakthroughs in Formula Renault 2.0, with Pic, Ricciardo and Vergnegraduating to Formula Renault 3.5 Series, and Grosjean catching the eye inhis Lotus Renault GP F1 demo drives for World Series by Renault, while alsohelping to bring the New Formula Renault 3.5 development programme to asuccessful conclusion.The Formula Renault 2.0 and Formula Renault 3.5 single-seaters are bothdesigned to prepare drivers for the rigours of Formula One. Learning theropes in Formula Renault 2.0 national championships and then Eurocup FormulaRenault 2.0, budding young drivers also have the opportunity to shine inFormula Renault 3.5 Series and earn a place on the big stage. Out of the 21drivers with confirmed places on the Formula One grid in 2012, no fewer than12 have earned their spurs in a Renault Sport Technologies car. Among themis Felipe Massa, the Eurocup Formula Renault 2.0 champion in 2000, the sameyear that Kimi Raikkonen caused a sensation by securing an F1 drive on thestrength of his Formula Renault 2.0 UK title win, a crown lifted three yearslater by Lewis Hamilton. For his part, Kamui Kobayashi took the EurocupFormula Renault 2.0 crown in 2005, while Grosjean is himself a former winnerof the French Formula Renault 2.0 championship.Pic, Ricciardo and Vergne have also performed with distinction at the wheelof a Formula Renault 2.0, with Vergne taking the French title in 2008 andthe Australian topping the Formula Renault 2.0 WEC standings that same year.Making the switch straight from Eurocup Formula Renault 2.0 to FormulaRenault 3.5 Series, meanwhile, Pic secured a stunning first win in the classon the streets of Monaco in 2008. Continuing their ascents, Ricciardo andVergne then enjoyed a season apiece in England, Ricciardo lifting theBritish International F3 title in 2009 and Vergne succeeding him as championa year later. Their next destination was Formula Renault 3.5 Series. The2010 runner-up, the Australian has successfully combined his Formula Renault3.5 Series and Formula One duties with HRT this year, while Vergne, whofinished second in the 2011 Formula Renault 3.5 Series, earned his 2012Formula One slot after impressing in testing.The trio's promotion to Formula One is richly deserved and puts RenaultSport Technologies' development programme firmly in the spotlight. Aselection of other drivers, among them Robert Wickens, are also in with achance of joining them next season, and their progress will be monitoredclosely by all World Series by Renault stakeholders, who will continue withtheir task of nurturing the champions of tomorrow. In lining up for the 2012Formula Renault 2.0 and Formula Renault 3.5 Series championships, thosefuture stars will have no shortage of role models to emulate, with Pic,Ricciardo and Vergne the latest to show that anything is possible withenough hard work, dedication and the support of a programme tailored tohelping drivers reach the peak.