The next talent for F1 is emerging: Who is Theo Pourchaire?

Theo Pourchaire is considered one of the biggest junior talents in Formula 2 and, as part of the Sauber Academy, and has a good chance of making the step up to Formula 1. In an exclusive interview with GPblog, the young Frenchman talks about the role of his family, why F2 was the best choice and what it will take to drive in F1 in 2024.

F1 on TV and the Monaco Grand Prix

It is raining in Belgium, and so the sheltered hospitality unit of Alfa Romeo F1 Team Stake is used on Thursday before the Belgian Grand Prix. Pourchaire walks in dressed in his Alfa Romeo kit. The smile is barely off his face, as that is often the case with the young driver. This year, then, there is a lot to smile about, as Pourchaire is second in the championship.

The man from Grasse was already second in the F2 championship in 2022, then behind Felipe Drugovich, but ahead of Logan Sargeant who will compete in F1 for Williams in 2023. Pourchaire also dreams of a place in F1. He already tested for Alfa Romeo's team once and seems a serious candidate for 2024, given Guanyu Zhou's expiring contract.

Racing has been Pourchaire's forte since childhood. Indeed, his father is a big fan of motorsport. Rally mostly, but F1 is also on the TV at weekends, which attracts young Theo's attention. He got a go-kart at the age of three and turned out to be pretty good at it. It startd as a hobby but soon got out of hand.

"As a child, I remember watching F1 on the TV a little bit and going to the Monaco Grand Prix. (a half-hour drive from his hometown of Grasse in France)." Pourchaire himself remembers little of that time, but everything was filmed. "At first, it was just a hobby. Really one day a week just to enjoy because I loved that, and after it became a passion, we started the races. Then we never stopped."

Source: Alfa Romeo F1 Team Stake

Pourchaire the good-natured family man

His father continued to play an important role in karting. As a mechanic, his father worked on the kart, not that he had any experience in it by the way. Pourchaire's father may have watched motorsport, but he is mainly a fan and not a trained mechanic. That bond with his father marks the importance of his family, which has continued to follow and support him everywhere.

"My sister is with me on the racetracks, and my father has been helping me a lot throughout my career, and my mother as well. My family is very important to me. Also, the people I work with at Alfa Romeo, and at ART Grand Prix in Formula 2. It's important to build strong relationships

Pourchaire is completely immersed in the glamorous world of motorsport. "I'm a simple guy. I love what I do. It's a great chance to be a Formula 2 driver, f1 reserve driver."

Chasing titles in formula cars

What started as a hobby soon became very serious. In karting, Pourchaire won race after race. For instance, he added several French championships to his name and finished third in the world championship. It was good enough to force a spot in French Formula 4, and with formula cars, Pourchaire proved to know what to do even better.

In 2018, Pourchaire made his debut in French F4 and immediately finished third in the championship. A rookie championship was also held that year, which Pourchaire won by a landslide. It gave him the chance to go to the most competitive F4 championship in Germany, the ADAC F4 Championship. As part of US Racing-CHRS, Pourchaire was also offered a place within the Sauber Academy.

At 15, Pourchaire started the championship with Dennis Hauger and Arthur Leclerc as older and more experienced opponents. Hauger and Leclerc are already part of Red Bull and Ferrari's training programmes by then, but it is the Sauber junior who wins the championship.

Pourchaire made giant leaps, as from the title in the German F4 championship, Pourchaire is surprisingly also a title contender in the Formula 3 championship a year later. Oscar Piastri (two years older) won the championship on behalf of Prema, and Logan Sargeant (three years older) finished third on behalf of the Italian team. Pourchaire sandwiched himself between the two as a rookie and was only three points short of the title. "It's funny when I think about it. Only three points away from winning the championship. Great experience, and I finished vice-champion."

'Wonderboy' of ART Grand Prix

Within ART Grand Prix, there is huge confidence in Pourchaire. After almost single-handedly helping ART to third place in the constructors' championship in F3 (teammates Alexander Smolyar and Sebastian Fernandez came no further than 11th and 14th in the championship), Pourchaire was moved straight to Formula 2.

"I think it was a great choice to go to F2 straight because F2 is much closer to F1. It's a very difficult category because there are some really experienced drivers. Also some really fast rookies, and you have a few tyre compounds. You have a pit stop to do in the feature race."

Still, the first season in F2 is not going as desired. Pourchaire impressed with his pole and victory in Monaco, but one race weekend later, during the main race in Baku, he broke his wrist. "That was not easy to recover from, but that season I still finished fifth in the championship."

Pourchaire saw Piastri win the championship that season and was the second best rookie after the Australian. The goal for 2022 is therefore clear: the championship. ''As you know, I struggled a lot with mechanical problems. Unfortunately, that's part of motorsport, but I had so many issues. Then it is difficult to build a strong season. I still became vice-champion, and this year I am fighting to win F2."

Sauber Academy support

At the time of this interview, Pourchaire was second in the championship. For the third year in a row, he is the strongest within his team but saw former teammate Frederik Vesti, of all people, ahead of him in the championship. After the weekend in Belgium, the two drivers swapped over, and Pourchaire now leads. The Dane made the switch from ART to Prema and has been pretty consistent this year.

Pourchaire has also worked hard on that consistency. This year, the Frenchman has already finished on the podium seven times, and his qualifying, in particular, has improved tremendously. Whereas last year he had outliers up and down, Pourchaire can now be found in the top 10 every weekend. This makes a big difference in the title race with a feature and sprint race where points can be earned, but F1 teams are also paying attention to this. "They like to see a driver that can have great performances every weekend."

''It's mainly mentally. I struggled to deliver everything in qualifying and to be relaxed behind the wheel. In qualifying you need to almost over-push to do great results, and this sometimes can be scary or not usual for drivers. You want to be to driving clean and to keep the car on the road. But you need to over-push, almost over-push, not but too much. Otherwise, you'll be in the wall."

After finishing second in 2022, Pourchaire will settle for nothing less than a Formula 2 title in 2023. That will also boost his chances of an F1 seat. Asked where he can still improve, the good-humoured Frenchman jokes 'everywhere'.

''I try to think of one specific thing, but of course I can still improve in everything. I can be more of a team leader. Of course, I am still very young. That's what people tell me. I'm only 19 years old and sometimes I struggle to talk to people and motivate them. It's not easy because I'm normally more of a shy person. I try to talk a lot more, and that should also help in F1, where you have to deal with a lot more people than in Formula 2.''

Pourchaire is getting a lot of support from Sauber. The school he has been associated with since 2019 supports him financially but also helps him get better as a driver. ''They play a very big role. They help me a lot financially. It's an expensive sport, and without them, I wouldn't be here. Also, technically. I did a FP1 last year and do a lot of Formula 1 simulator work. That helps me a lot. It gives me a big confidence boost. 

Will Pourchaire get a chance in Formula 1?

The goal and the dream are clear: Formula 1. Indeed, Pourchaire dares to speak out loud that he wants to become world champion in F1. But above all, Pourchaire wants to enjoy himself: "I just try to enjoy it. It all depends on the opportunities you get. Everyone dreams of becoming an F1 world champion. So the level is really high. I can't say how realistic it is, but it's definitely my goal, it's my dream."

But will Pourchaire be seen on the F1 grid in 2024? ''I think a lot of drivers deserve to be in F1. I don't want to say too much. I am doing my best this season, and hopefully, I will get an opportunity one day. I have had great results in junior categories. I am the youngest-ever race winner in F3 and the youngest pole sitter in F2. Vice-champion in F2 and F3. Hopefully, I will win the title this season, that would help me a lot."

After the race at Spa-Francorchamps, Formula 2 will be in action at Zandvoort, Monza and the Yas Marina Circuit in Abu Dhabi. The races in Belgium, the Netherlands and Italy in particular, will determine his F1 chances in 2024. At Alfa Romeo, Guanyu Zhou's contract expires, and sponsor Alfa Romeo will leave after this season. Racing under the Sauber name, a Sauber talent who has just become F2 champion would certainly not look out of place on the F1 grid.