Pourchaire eyeing IndyCar alongside Alfa Romeo reserve role

Theo Pourchaire says IndyCar is on his list of potential series for 2024 alongside his Alfa Romeo reserve driver role.

The Frenchman is currently leading the Formula 2 championship heading into the final round in Abu Dhabi, and holds a 25-point advantage over Frederik Vesti with a maximum of 39 available. Pourchaire ran in FP1 at the Mexico City Grand Prix and says he will be reserve for Alfa Romeo next season, but that he also wants to race and IndyCar is one of his targets.

“Let’s see, I have some opportunities,” Pourchaire said. “I’m talking a lot with Alfa Romeo to see what we can do together and I will be a reserve driver for the team [next year] which is great. That’s the first good opportunity, but of course I want to do something else. It’s a priority for me; I want to drive, I want to keep myself busy and fit so let’s see. There are a few great championships.

“The best is to drive a car that is close to F1. For sure, nothing is really, really close to F1. F1 is really special, but the best is to drive a single seater that is really quick. ...IndyCar, Super Formula, maybe there’s other options I don’t know, but let’s see.”

Pourchaire and Vesti were two of five F2 youngsters taking part in FP1 in Mexico -- along with Jack Doohan, Ollie Bearman and Isack Hadjar -- but there was frustration for the Alfa Romeo driver as he completed just four laps due to a brake system issue.

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“Small problem on the brake system," the Frenchman said. "I cannot go too much into details, and also the team is not 100 percent sure where it comes from, but it’s motorsport -- it can happen. Unfortunately it happens when I’m in the car for FP1.

“A bit disappointed for sure because I prepared myself a lot. Last time I drove was in Abu Dhabi last year, so it was a long time ago. I wanted to drive; the track looks cool. I did some small laps, but I couldn’t push as it was not so safe to push. That’s how it is.

“I had an alarm on the dashboard. The team could see as well, on the telemetry, the issue. We tried many things to solve the issue, but it didn’t work.

“I [will be fully] focused on F2 in Abu Dhabi. Let’s see if I will be driving in FP1 there. That’s most probably the only track where I can drive again in F1 so let’s see. As I said, full focus on the F2 championship; it’s my main goal, and I want to finish on a high [in my] Formula 2 career. I have a title to win; I have two titles to win because there is a team championship as well, so I think we can do great in Abu Dhabi. Maybe I will be back in F1 very soon.”