By Alan Baldwin
WOKING, England (Reuters) – Pato O’Ward jokes that if he’d deposited a dime every time he was asked about his Formula 1 prospects, Pato O’Ward would be a billionaire, and the 22-year-old Mexican IndyCar driver can’t let up now.
The rising star of the US open wheel series, third overall with two wins for the Arrow McLaren SP team and fourth place at the Indianapolis 500, will test with McLaren’s F1 team in Abu Dhabi in December.
The outing is a reward for his first IndyCar win at Texas Motor Speedway in May, and O’Ward was bubbly when he visited the Woking factory for a seat adjustment and time in the simulator.
“Formula One. This is where this dream begins,” the Monterrey native told Reuters.
“Anyone who tells you they didn’t start there is lying because it’s an F1 man. It’s what you see as a kid.
“That’s when my passion for motorsport began, with this car down here – the car from 2008,” added O’Ward, signaling in the direction of the McLaren, which won the first of his seven titles for Briton Lewis Hamilton.
It’s a car he hopes McLaren boss Zak Brown will let him drive one day, maybe if he wins the IndyCar title or the Indianapolis 500.
“That’s actually one of the ideas I had for another bet with him,” said O’Ward. “When I see him I’ll say, ‘Man, let’s make another bet’.”
Double world champion Fernando Alonso was also a youth idol, the Spaniard is now a friend after racing together in Indianapolis in 2020, and ex-F1 driver and IndyCar rookie Romain Grosjean is also a buddy.
“I’m going to text him over the next few weeks and do a little brain rummaging to see what he has to say about the F1 cars,” said O’Ward of the Frenchman.
HERTA SPECULATION
Winning a title would bolster O’Wards hopes of jumping from one McLaren team to another, but in the meantime, he tells those who want to inquire about his future to just enjoy what he’s doing.
“I enjoy it when I drive IndyCar for victory and when it comes to being in Formula 1 in a few years, then you can cheer me on in Formula 1. But enjoy where I am, ”he said.
“I’m so happy where I am right now and I feel like I’m in a great place.
“If the F1 stuff bears fruit for my future, it will be with this team and for the same goal that we have at IndyCar, to win races and championships.”
Mexico only has one F1 driver, Red Bull race winner Sergio Perez, while the United States doesn’t have one in a series owned by US-based Liberty Media and with growth plans for North America.
That could change if the Alfa Romeo, led by Sauber, is taken over by Michael Andretti, with speculation that the 21-year-old American Colton Herta could then move to the low-ranking Swiss team.
O’Ward said it would be hard to refuse.
“If he (Herta) leaves and he gets into Formula 1 … he leaves a car that can win the 500 and win the championship in IndyCar,” he added. “But F1 opportunities come once and sometimes never.
“You can’t choose when to take it. I won’t believe it until it actually happens. But the way it sounds, it could very well happen. “
(Reporting by Alan Baldwin, Editing by Ken Ferris)
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