Briatore tipped to strongly consider this driver: 'Why he is not in F1?'

Speaking to a betting site, the 1997 world champion stated: “Flavio Briatore has always been very brutal, that's how it should be. He's made a lot of driver calls in the past, some that were amazing and some that were completely messed up, but least he tried.”

Villeneuve cannot understand why Formula 1 teams aren’t looking beyond certain series for new drivers, especially considering that at the moment there aren’t any major talents on the rise ready to step into the premier class according to the Canadian.

“We don't see that sparkle from any young drivers at the moment. It's very difficult to know what's coming up. For some reason F1 is not looking at what's happening in the States, like in IndyCar, and which drivers could or could not maybe be a potential F1 driver.”

Villeneuve finally believes that a multiple-time IndyCar champion like Palou would be a better choice than an F2 driver: “I think someone like Alex Palou, I still don't understand why he is not in F1? It doesn't make sense. Why would you prefer an F2 driver?”

The Spanish driver, who became a four-time IndyCar champion just a few weeks ago, was the subject of a summer rumor suggesting that Red Bull had set its sights on him to partner with Max Verstappen at Red Bull.

Helmut Marko, asked about the matter, addressed the rumors by clarifying that Palou was not on Red Bull’s radar and, more broadly, on the Red Bull Junior Program.

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