F1 – Frédéric Vasseur explains why it was too early for Pourchaire

Last fall, there was only one seat left available on the 2022 grid of Formula 1. In a position of strength, the stable Alfa Romeo had wanted to wait as long as possible before announcing the identity of the pilot who would accompany his recruit Valtteri Bottas for the next season. As a pilot of Formula 2 and above all a member of the Sauber Junior Team, Theo Pourchaire long hoped to win the precious seat, which he finally had Guanyu-Zhou, who will also become the first Chinese to start a Formula 1 Grand Prix. 

Team boss Frédéric Vasseur explained at the Formula 1 website why he had not really considered his young French compatriot. “He won at Monaco in Formula 2 but... the car is so complex in F1 and we have just six days of testing before the start of the season, that means it would have been, from my point of view, far too risky to get him into F1 now. It's better that he concentrates on the championship in F2 and we'll see about the future." he explained. Before continuing: “He did a fantastic job at the start of last season in F2… but we have to keep in mind that he was still in Formula 4 a year and a half ago”. 

After tasting his first sensations behind the wheel of an F1 during a private test with Alfa Romeo in Hungary last summer, Pourchaire will be entrusted with a testing program in 2022. “Théo will definitely do Free Practice 1. We will also do test days to prepare him for the future. But once again, when you line up in F2, the most important thing is to win the championship and not prepare for the future. I'm going to ask him to be F2 champion.", added Vasseur. As a reminder, after a fifth place in 2021 for his first season in the antechamber of F1, Théo Pourchaire (ART Grand Prix) will ride again at ART Grand Prix. With the stated objective of winning the title. 

ALSO READ > Théo Pourchaire continues with ART GP