I don’t have any money to put on the table

Formula 2’s youngest race winner when he triumphed in Monaco at just 17 years old, Theo Pourchaire once was one of the hottest prospects on the way to Formula 1. After winning the F2 title at age 20 but on his third attempt, the Sauber reserve driver was unable to find a drive at the pinnacle of motorsport, as the Swiss-based team kept an unchanged line-up of Valtteri Bottas and Zhou Guanyu.

Forays into Super Formula and IndyCar this year were short-lived for the impecunious Frenchman but made for an eventful campaign, and a somewhat frustrated but desperately optimistic Pourchaire longingly anticipates more opportunities while fulfilling his current F1 duties, as he told Motorsport.com in an exclusive interview.

How has your year been overall?

Theo Pourchaire: “I mean, it was a strange year, let’s say. I’m used to know what… I mean, what I will be doing each year. I’m used to stay in a single championship, to do a lot of races and to win races. But that’s not the case this year.

“It’s a bit of a special year, of course. I could expect that with the F2 title and not being able to drive again in this championship. I had to find solutions, to find a championship where to drive, and it was not easy. So, yeah, it’s a strange year, but you know, it was good experience as well.”

Let’s start with Super Formula. How did you like it there? And how big was the challenge? Do we understand how big of a challenge it is?

TP: “It’s a big challenge, because, first of all, it’s really far from Europe. It’s tough to communicate in Japan, because it’s a very special country. You know, not a lot of people speak English there. So for me, it was not easy to communicate with engineers, with the mechanics, with the team members, and to make myself a strong place there.

“But I really enjoyed my time. The car was amazing to drive. Really quick car, really. I mean, I drove only in Suzuka. But Suzuka is amazing track, so I think it’s the best track in Japan, and one of the best in the world. So I enjoyed a lot. Unfortunately, of course, the first race was not very good. The performance was not perfect, but, you know…

“It was tough to find as well the budget also from my side. So when the opportunity with Arrow McLaren came, I couldn’t… I couldn’t say no. I was, of course, really happy to receive this opportunity. We all know this sport is really expensive, and this opportunity was perfect for me at the time.