Virgin car set for February run

Wirth has been a pioneer in pushing state-of-the-art Computational Fluid Dynamics technology, and is confident that it is now advanced enough for car designs not to need proofing in wind tunnels.

His company, Wirth Research, has already produced the class-winning American Le Mans Series Acura LMP1 and LMP2 prototypes using this system.

"We will continue our philosophy of major investment in cutting edge technologies to carry on innovating," he said.

"Our group of companies has involvement in many areas both inside and outside motorsport and our philosophy of technology transfer will continue to benefit all of our existing and future clients.

"The fact that our Formula 1 project is fully on schedule speaks volumes for the motivation and capabilities of our entire workforce. We are all looking forward to seeing the car break cover for the first time on track in February."

He added: "We are of course delighted to add Virgin Racing to our burgeoning list of blue-chip clients," comments Nick Wirth, Technical Director of both Wirth Research and Virgin Racing.

"Virgin Racing is an all-new Formula 1 entry and here at Wirth Research we are very proud to be providing the backbone to it with a unique approach to car design and development, part of a process we call 'Development in the Digital Domain'."

Virgin Racing officially unveiled its plans for 2010 at a press conference in London on Tuesday - confirming that Lucas di Grassi will join Timo Glock as the team's drivers.