Red Bull recently announced that they would be signing up New Zealand driver Brendon Hartley for the third driver role with the team, and with their sister team Toro Rosso. Hartley has been associated with Red Bull for a long time, and last year finished the F3 championship in third, having picked up five wins.

With cost-cutting in full force, the double stint would see Hartley have to step in if any of the four drivers were ill, and he can also take the car out during Friday practice. That is unlikely though, with testing so limited, the two main drivers will want all the mileage they can get.

Unfortunately for Hartley, his FIA Superlicence hasn't come through yet, which means he probably won't be able to be the official reserve until the European season gets underway. For the first few races, Red Bull are bringing David Coulthard back in case of emergency. David has been enjoying his retirement over the winter, celebrating the birth of his first child, and getting ready to be a pundit on the BBC's F1 broadcasting. However, it looks like he will have to get his fitness back up to scratch to be on hand if anything goes wrong. Reserve drivers do not have to get in the car very often, but it's always a good idea to be ready.

On the same subject, Brawn GP have announced their reserve driver will be Anthony Davidson. Anthony is also working for the BBC this year, as commentator on their radio coverage. He has been trying to find his way back into a seat though, since his drive with Super Aguri was lost as the team folded just four races into the 2008 season. With the ex-Honda team now led by Ross Brawn, everyone is just happy to be back on the grid, and Ross is picking consistency and experience over new, younger drivers. Davidson has a lot of experience in testing, and can give great feedback to the team if he needs to. I imagine he is very grateful for the chance to be associated with the team (after many years at Honda), even if it is not the full race drive that he craves.