Auto racing Heikki Kovalainen has been officially confirmed as a McLaren-Mercedes F1 driver for 2008, stepping into Fernando Alonso's seat for the second year in succession.

The Finn previously replaced the Spaniard at Renault F1 for the 2007 campaign – his debut season in the top flight – and impressed by both outscoring and outperforming highly-experienced team-mate Giancarlo Fisichella en route to seventh spot in the drivers' standings, including joining new team-mate Lewis Hamilton up on the rostrum following a stirring drive to the runner-up spot in the rain-lashed Japanese Formula 1 Grand Prix at Fuji.

“I am so excited to join a team like Vodafone McLaren-Mercedes,” Kovalainen enthused, on becoming the third Finn to move to the Woking-based outfit in recent years. “So far I have been blown away by the dedication and commitment to winning which is clear through the entire organisation, and I am really excited about our joint future.

“As a Finn it's an honour for me to follow in Mika (Hakkinen) and Kimi (Raikkonen's) footsteps. I haven't really spent a lot of time with Lewis so far, but from what I know I think we will work well together and do our best for the team.”

The 26-year-old has agreed an unspecified long-term contract with the British squad. CEO Martin Whitmarsh acknowledged much consideration had gone into determining McLaren's F1 final 2008 line-up, which will retain Pedro de la Rosa as third driver as well as Gary Paffett, who will continue to assist the Spaniard with the testing programme when required.

“We had a number of options open to us,” Whitmarsh confirmed. “As always we want to make sure we have the most competitive driver line-up, and I think Lewis and Heikki will be a formidable combination. Both enjoyed great rookie seasons in 2007 and share a genuine passion for winning and being the best in Formula 1 racing.