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'The older I get, the less I want to race in Formula 1'

'The older I get, the less I want to race in Formula 1'

21-01-2022 10:57 Last update: 13:19
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GPblog.com

Formula 1 is the premier class of motorsports and is the ultimate goal for almost any driver, but not for Josef Newgarden. In fact, the two-time IndyCar champion, in 2017 and 2019, finds Formula 1 increasingly unappealing.

Formula 1 is all about the constructors

Newgarden once seemed to be on his way to Formula 1, but after a second place in the British Formula Ford Championship and a year in GP3, now Formula 3, he could not find a new seat. The American driver returned to his homeland and became Indy Lights champion in 2011. In 2012, he switched to the IndyCar championship, which he won in 2017 and 2019 for Team Penske, who he still drives for.

In conversation with Speedweek.com, among others, Newgarden voiced his criticism of Formula 1. "When I think about Formula 1, I see this championship mainly as a race of the constructors," he said. According to the American, it is the constructors who try to build the fastest car and thus become champions. The drivers can only barely make a difference in this.

IndyCar better than Formula 1

So, according to the two-time IndyCar champion, Formula 1 is not really a driver's championship and is also less interesting to him than IndyCar. "The older I get and the more Grands Prix I see, the less I want to race in Formula 1." The drivers in IndyCar race with a standard Dallara chassis, so a driver can really make a difference. According to Newman, in Formula One, too few drivers are able to fight for victory.

Although he finds the premier class of motor racing less attractive than IndyCar, he must admit that he would like to drive a Formula 1 car, if only to get a better picture of the sport.