Pourchaire in action for Alfa Romeo? 'I can't say much about that'
Interview
- Ludo van Denderen
Théo Pourchaire has been waiting for another win since his victory in the very first Formula 2 weekend of the season but after the main race in Monza - in which the Frenchman took third place - the championship is within reach for him. With one race weekend to go, the Alfa Romeo reserve driver has a 25-point lead over Frederik Vesti, who was driven off the track in Monza on Sunday and lost expensive points. He can cautiously look ahead to 2024. Does a seat in the Sauber (currently still Alfa Romeo) await him?
A maximum of 39 points are up for grabs in Abu Dhabi, where the season's finale takes place. Pourchaire therefore has a more than good starting position. Indeed, with such a lead, shouldn't you really be next to the title? "Yeah, I'm still not the champion," the Frenchman responded to a question from GPblog. "It's 25 points. It's great. But you never know what can happen. In Bahrain, I scored 32 points across the weekend. So, let's keep focused. I mean, I'm happy. It's a great lead. But still, the job is not done."
Before the season, Pourchaire was the big favourite. "And why I deserve to be champion, I don't know. I hope I'm fast enough to be the champion. I’m leading the championship. I did some great races. For some reason, I still didn't win another race [after Bahrain]. But it will come for sure. It will come. Still, one weekend to go. We did two pole positions. The level is really high this season. And I'm happy with my job. I'm consistent. It's not finished. So keep focused," Pourchaire replied to GPblog.
Pourchaire in action with Alfa Romeo
The decisive race weekend is not for another two months. In the meantime, Pourchaire will start working for Alfa Romeo. "I will go back to my reserve driver duties with Alfa Romeo a lot more. I'll be dedicated to that, which is good. A lot of simulator work. Probably some rallying in the Formula 1 car. But I cannot say much," Pourchaire said, perhaps referring to participating in free practice in one or two of the remaining F1 weekends.
Sauber - who are parting ways with namesake Alfa Romeo after this season - haven't announced who will get a seat at the team in 2024 alongside Valtteri Bottas. Guanyu Zhou hopes to extend his expiring commitment, but Pourchaire also wants nothing more than to make his debut in Formula 1. The Frenchman himself does not know what his future looks like. "It’s true, it’s an honest answer, I don’t know. I just want to say a big thanks to the Sauber Academy for helping me for four years from F3. This season, I’m racing thanks to them. So it's great to be the reserve driver as well. It's a huge responsibility. And for the future, I am talking with them often, but we will see."