Madrid: An American team will be racing in Formula One from 2010, and IndyCar driver Danica Patrick is a candidate to fill one of its seats.

USF1, which will be officially unveiled on February 24, will have a staff of at least 100, a working budget of euro50 million ($64 million) and an aim to put two American drivers on the starting grid.

The team are looking at testing out a number of candidates, especially the 26-year-old Patrick.

“She’s great. She gets a lot of press,” USF1 technical director Ken Anderson said.

NASCAR driver Scott Speed, who raced 28 times for F1 team Toro Rosso from 2006-07, is also a candidate.

Conor Daly — son of former F1 driver Derek Daly — and Josef Newgarden are also being mentioned, with both drivers presently competing in European junior categories.

The team will be based out of Charlotte, North Carolina, and with much of the technology coming from the US means that “being the only game in town in the US means there’re a lot of companies we can lean on to outsource,” according to Anderson. (AP)