Alguersuari still confident of 2013 drive

27/06/2012

Mat Coch writes:

Jaime Alguersuari remains confident he will be on the grid in 2013. Dumped at the last minute by Toro Rosso, the Spaniard has been out of a race drive ever since, though he has passed the time by working as BBC Radio 5's Formula One pundit alongside testing duties for Pirelli.

"I'm really missing F1 - this would be a great year to be involved," he said in his latest BBC blog. "Everything is so close, you can play with the strategy a lot, tyre management is so important.

"I just have to bide my time. I am pretty sure I will be driving in F1 again next year with a good team. Everything is looking very good at the moment."

Refusing to admit defeat despite Toro Rosso turning its back on him, Alguersuari won a number of admirers in the paddock by showing a maturity beyond his age in the wake of his dismissal. Even now, as the season approaches its half-way mark, he refuses to let frustration cloud his judgement.

"I am only 22," he reasons. "I have scored 31 points in F1. And what I am trying to do with my work with BBC Radio 5 live and as Pirelli's F1 test driver this year is to develop and understand myself better and give myself a much better future in F1."

He draws inspiration from countryman and current championship leader Fernando Alonso, who also took a year out of competition at the beginning of his Formula One career. "My aim is to follow in Fernando's footsteps. My dream is to become Spain's number one and be a world champion myself in a few years."

For the moment he remains on the sidelines, bolstering his chances of a contract next season by performing testing duties for Pirelli. At Spa over the last two days Alguersuari has been sampling new compounds for 2013, experience that may well prove irresistible for some team managers.