Toro Rosso are due to confirm tomorrow Sebastien Bourdais has left the team, with Jaime Alguersuari to take his place.

Frenchman Bourdais was given his F1 chance after winning four successive ChampCar titles in the United States from 2004 to 2007.

But the 30-year-old struggled throughout his time in the sport, winning just six points from the 27 grands prix in which he competed.

Bourdais was overshadowed last year by Sebastian Vettel, who gave the often uncompetitive team a dream win in last season's Italian Grand Prix.

Given another chance this season, Bourdais again found himself second best to Swiss rookie Sebastien Buemi, who out-qualified his more experienced team-mate seven to two.

Bourdais' F1 career ended in suitably downbeat fashion in yesterday's German Grand Prix when he retired with a hydraulic failure at the Nurburgring.

Although team principal Franz Tost refused to confirm Bourdais' departure after the race, reserve and test driver Alguersuari is expected to step up to the plate for the rest of the season.

The rising Spanish star is the reigning British F3 champion and another product of the Red Bull Young Driver Development programme.

Alguersuari will take his place in the record books at the Hungarian Grand Prix in a fortnight by becoming the sport's youngest ever driver at the age of 19 years and 126 days.

That would beat New Zealander Mike Thackwell's record by 57 days set in the 1980 Canadian Grand Prix.