Despite now being based in Italy, from where he is mounting an assault on the new Formula Three Euroseries, Australian Ryan Briscoe found time to talk to his native media about life in Europe, his step back to F3 and his hopes for the future....
Briscoe has been living in Italy for quite a long time, despite only being 21 years of age. Determined to make in in
Formula One, he came out of karting with very good international results and moved into Formula Renault, where he won the Italian Championship in 2001. Last year, he did half a season in F3000 and a little bit less in Formula Three, after stepping down at the behest of the Toyota F1 team, for whom he is a contracted test driver.
The move appears to have been the right one for, this year, Briscoe is the very clear leader in the new Euroseries. Driving for the Italian team Prema Power, with which he secured the Italian FRenault crown, Briscoe is currently 27 points in front of his nearest rival, with ten races completed and ten to go..
Q:
What’s the chat in Europe as to who is likely to stay in F1 and who is a bit rocky? Who might lose a seat this year?
RB:
I’m not really sure. It’s sort of a bit out of the picture and I think there are a lot of speculations, but I have really got no idea.
Q:
You could add to it. Make your own rumours...!
RB:
No, I don’t really know at all.
Q:
Perhaps the converse of that question is which of the young drivers in F1 have you already raced against, perhaps even as far back as karting? Did you race against
Fernando Alonso, the young Spaniard who in many people’s eyes has been the young star of the F1 season?
RB:
Yeah, I used to race karts against Alonso. He is my age and we used to race together from juniors up to Formula A. Apart from him, I raced a bit against
Jenson Button and that’s it, I think, of the F1 drivers. I raced quite a lot against Alonso and he has always been very fast.
Q:
Is he over-rated?
RB:
I wouldn’t say so. I think, in
F1, he’s doing a fantastic job and, no, I think he’s not been over-rated at all.
