Valsecchi rather be reserve at Lotus than racing for slow team

  • Published on 08 Mar 2013 14:45
  • comments 0
  • By: Rob Veenstra
Davide Valsecchi, the reigning GP2 champion, insists he would rather be Lotus' reserve driver than a racer for one of F1's slowest teams. A look at the standings of last year's GP2 championship shows that drivers Italian Valsecchi beat to the title - Esteban Gutierrez, Max Chilton and Giedo van der Garde - have successfully made the step up to the F1 grid for 2013.

But 26-year-old Valsecchi, struggling with fewer sponsors, has to be content with the reserve role at Lotus, having admitted recently that he received offers to race, but only if he could meet those teams' sponsorship needs. Asked how he is enjoying his new job, he told Russian website f1news.ru: "Fantastic. Last year I won the GP2 title, now I'm making the first steps in F1. I will try to learn as much as possible from Kimi Raikkonen, and eventually become a driver the team will hopefully choose (to race) for next season."

Asked if he is disappointed that those he beat last year - Luiz Razia, Gutierrez, Chilton and van der Garde - were all offered race seats before him, Valsecchi smiled: "Good question! No. I didn't have the opportunity to race; this is the only opportunity I had, and for this I say thank you to Lotus. Some of my colleagues of GP2 are now with Marussia and Caterham. First, to get there you need a huge budget, which is impossible to find in Italy. Secondly, Lotus is one of the best teams. A top team. If the question is whether it is better to be chasing with one of the last teams or to be a backup driver with Lotus, maybe opening up something really worthwhile for the future, I would have chosen the second option in any case," he insisted. (GMM)

Order the latest Lotus merchandise here!

Replies (0)

Login to reply

BE Grand Prix of Belgium

Local time 02:02

BEGrand Prix of Belgium

Local time 02:02

World Championship standings 2025

Show full world champion standings

Test calendar

See full test schedule

Related news

Give your opinion!

Will Bottas challenge Hamilton for the world championship in 2020?

Formula 1 Calendar - 2025

Date
Grand Prix
Circuit
-
Bahrain
14 - Mar 16
Australia
21 - Mar 23
China
4 - Apr 6
Japan
11 - Apr 13
Bahrain
18 - Apr 20
Saudi Arabia
2 - May 4
United States of America
16 - May 18
Italy
23 - May 25
Monaco
30 - Jun 1
Spain
13 - Jun 15
Canada
27 - Jun 29
Austria
4 - Jul 6
United Kingdom
25 - Jul 27
Belgium
1 - Aug 3
Hungary
29 - Aug 31
Netherlands
5 - Sep 7
Italy
19 - Sep 21
Azerbaijan
3 - Oct 5
Singapore
17 - Oct 19
United States of America
24 - Oct 26
Mexico
7 - Nov 9
Brazil
21 - Nov 23
United States of America
28 - Nov 30
Qatar
5 - Dec 7
United Arab Emirates
See full schedule

Formula 1 Calendar - 2025

Date
Grand Prix & Circuit
14 - Mar 16
Australia Albert Park
21 - Mar 23
4 - Apr 6
11 - Apr 13
18 - Apr 20
Saudi Arabia Jeddah Street Circuit
2 - May 4
United States of America Miami International Autodrome
16 - May 18
23 - May 25
Monaco Monte Carlo
30 - Jun 1
13 - Jun 15
27 - Jun 29
Austria Red Bull Ring
4 - Jul 6
United Kingdom Silverstone
25 - Jul 27
1 - Aug 3
Hungary Hungaroring
29 - Aug 31
Netherlands Circuit Zandvoort
5 - Sep 7
Italy Monza
19 - Sep 21
Azerbaijan Baku City Circuit
3 - Oct 5
17 - Oct 19
United States of America Circuit of the Americas
24 - Oct 26
7 - Nov 9
Brazil Interlagos
21 - Nov 23
United States of America Las Vegas Street Circuit
28 - Nov 30
5 - Dec 7
United Arab Emirates Yas Marina Circuit
See full schedule

Driver profile

  • Team -
  • Points -
  • Podiums -
  • Grand Prix -
  • Country MX
  • Date of b. Aug 5 1991 (33)
  • Place of b. Monterrey, MX
  • Weight 63 kg
  • Length 1.8 m
Show full profile

Team profile

Show full profile
show sidebar