De la Rosa always believed in F1 return

New Sauber driver Pedro de la Rosa said he never stopped believing that he would get a second chance to race in formula one.

The Spaniard has been working as a test and reserve driver for the McLaren team since 2003 and last raced in a grand prix with the Woking-based team in 2006.

De la Rosa last raced full-time back in 2002 with Jaguar Racing and he said that he took on the reserve role at McLaren with the view of returning to a race-seat in the future.

"I am extremely happy about this, especially because I have been pushing for it for so many years," De la Rosa told the official F1 website.

"My motivation for testing was to keep on believing in myself and believing that this could happen. So I am extremely happy.

"I have learned a lot from working with a super team like McLaren Mercedes, and if I am here, it is thanks to them.

"They have helped me grow as a racing driver and I am a lot better now than when I joined the team back in 2003."?

The Spaniard said the most important thing for him is to feel like a race driver and to experience the thrill and excitement of competition again.

"The fact that I am back now means that I can feel like a race driver again," said de la Rosa.

"I can compete against other drivers and I can feel the adrenaline pumping through my system already."

Many have doubted de la Rosa's ability behind the wheel in the past, however, the 38-year old believes he has what it takes to be successful and he said: "I have a huge amount of motivation. I am a hard worker and I think that is the most important thing at this level. to still have the motivation and hunger to attack, and to work everyday as if it was the last day.

"How good will I be? We will see! I believe I can be a lot better than people expect and let's take it from there.

"It is a long winter. We have four weeks of great testing ahead and I will gradually get back to speed."

The Sauber, purchased by former owner Peter Sauber when BMW announced they would be pulling out of F1 at the end of 2009, have experienced a downsizing and a restructuring of their management team to ensure their survival.

And although he has come from McLaren with their state-of-the-art facilities and seemingly limitless resources, De la Rosa has been impressed by Sauber's facilities and the attitude of the staff at the team's Hinwii base.

However, he remains realistic about the outfit's prospects for the 2010 season.

"I need to spend more time with the team and with the people," said De la Rosa.

"I need to learn more about the 2010 car, and we'll need to wait until we start testing in February.

"We need to set goals that are achievable. However, I would be disappointed if we were not in a position to fight for points on a regular basis."