Interview with Sebastien Bourdais

Bourdais is adamant that he will stay in Champ Car next season, but he admits that his sights are on a 2008 switch to F1. Still, right now he is simply relishing the chance to drive a Formula One car for the first time in four years.

Autosport.com caught up with the Frenchman last night, at the end of his first day of testing, to hear his first impressions, his future plans, and why he had to have a seat fitting at Jerez, just a day before he began the test itself.

Q: How did your test with Scuderia Toro Rosso come about?

Sebastien Bourdais: "I am not the best person to be asked about that! I guess they are one of the few teams who were curious enough about me to give me a chance to test, and pretty much that is how it came to this test.

"Also, the relationship between Nicolas Todt and Gerhard Berger was pretty decisive in making this happen.

"And, as you know, I have been pretty successful in Champ Car at least for the last three years, so they decided to get their own idea about me. That's very much summary of what led to this."

Q: Were you surprised to get invited?

Bourdais: "It was a big surprise, as I actually told L'Equipe only a few of days before that my chances in F1 were over!

"But you should never say never in F1 - anything can happen, and it is always when things appear to be over that it actually happens.

"I think it is very ironic and absolutely a good representation of what F1 is. It is a top sport, and the competition is high, but some opportunities do happen."

Q: Everything must have happened so quickly since then...

Bourdais: "Well, the seat fitting happened here (at Jerez), we did it on Tuesday. You might not know, but I just had a new born baby, Emma, ten days ago. So it was not likely that I would be able to come to Europe (earlier than this week). They wanted me to come, but I would have had to sign the divorce paper at the same time... It was not a good idea. So yes, it has been happening very quick.

"Newman/Haas have been very supportive - they would be happy for me if I was successful in F1, though they they will be sad to see me leave. But right now, they know I won't put anything in jeopardy for next year, so they were pretty open minded about it."

Q: What is your target? To show what you can do?

Bourdais: "I think Toro Rosso gave me this opportunity, and the only point in testing is clear. The car is not a winning car, which is fine, so the only point is to compare to the current drivers, and maybe I can bring some different visions on the car, like this.

"They are pretty curious about the whole thing - so far it has been going very well. I am just enjoying myself, because I don't know when it will happen again. For me, this is the first time anyone (in F1) actually gave me three days of test..."

Q: It is not the first time you are in F1 car, though

Bourdais: "It has never been the same car, so I drove Arrows for a couple of hours, after I drove F3000, then second day was pretty good, then in the same season, at the end of the year, I drove Renault.

"It went really well, I did one afternoon and one morning, I had done 1:21.6 - which is the time Fernando [Alonso] has done, but unfortunately I made a mistake, and that is all I can remember from the test.

"It was rough on me, I think. But that is the way F1 is sometimes, really strict and really unforgiving. But in the meantime, Renault did not seem to offer... I think they had their own drivers already anyway.

"I never had an opportunity. All in all, I had two days of testing, so it is good to be able to come here and know that I am going to be in the car for three days.

"Personally, I was hoping to do some more. I am not coming from F3 or F3000 - i have driven lots of cars, and it is the third time in F1, so it's time to show what I can do with it."

Q: How was the Toro Rosso car, then?

Bourdais: "The car lost a lot of power. The engine feels like an F3 engine - not power-wise but in the way it curves; it is very linear, and it is actually easy to drive.

"I am used to a turbo engine that kicks in hard, so with this one you, go back on the power easily. Plus, the traction control gets things done easy.

"It does not mean it is easy to go fast, but the last bit of performance is always hard. I felt that I was not at all surprised by the power - I was surprised in an other way. like a kick in the back."

Q: What is the main difference between this car and a Champ Car?

Bourdais: "Two different worlds! F1 is narrow track, grooved tyres, light-weight and high-downforce; The power is pretty similar to Champ Car; I had driven with paddle shift before so I am accustomed to that, but in Champ Car you wrestle the car around whereas in F1 you don't do that. It is not a big difference in pedals - we have sequential but blip the throttle brake, you use clutch to get out of the pits."

Q: Was the braking power any shock?

Bourdais: "Not really, people don't understand. Just because in Champ Car we use steel brakes, it does not simply brake - it brakes very hard, especially on the bite. It has come a long way. We have two pads on both sides, front and rear, and the main difference [to F1] is weight - you cannot generate much G at the beginning because of the higher mass.

"I was not as surprised as I was when I drive an F1 car for the first time. Back then, in 2002, there was an autodown shift, it was obviously something unbelievable, so at top speed you are hitting the brakes as hard as you can, just holding the steering and the belt as you go through the corner. Now the system is out of equation, and although we still brake super late, it is not as surprising."

Q: You ruled out moving to F1 in 2007, saying you are committed to Newman/Haas and Champ Car

Bourdais: "Yes, and it's not just a press release thing, it is for real. You can really be sure that I am not the competition for [an F1 seat] next year, which is making things a lot easier for the test, as the other drivers don't have to look at me as though I am going to replace them.

"It is much more comfortable to test in this condition than without certainty. I am definitely driving for Newman/Haas next year."

Q: But 2008 is open?

Bourdais: "Yes, that is what I can imagine is one of the targets. It is easy to extend the relationship, otherwise there is no point in testing me. Right now we are going to focus on the testing and doing a good job. If i can bring anything interesting to the team, then maybe there is a future for me here."

Q: Did you have fun today?

Bourdais: "Yes, a lot. It has been a long time since I drove one of these - in fact there is a bit less power than before, but it is still the fastest car on the planet.

"It is a light car, so it is fun; you can push the limit, and when you get to the limit you really have a feeling of speed.

"It is not the actual top speed - that's not special compared to Champ Car - but obviously when you get into the fast corners, it is definitely there, the fact that the car is 150kg lighter (than a Champ Car) makes a pretty big difference in the way it generates G-forces."

Q: Is the operation here much bigger than at a Champ Car test?

Bourdais: "The way Newman/Haas operate is very sophisticated and very similar to what we have here. Obviously the tools are different, but the way they approach and the work itself is the same. There are so many tools in F1 - differential settings, TC, engine braking - and those things you carry inside the car are more fun in some ways.

"For me, when it is the fourth season in the car, testing can be frustrating as you are running out of tools, things to try. Here, I guess the limits are endless. It is a nice thing when you care about technology, like me. It is always satisfying to feel that you never explore everything, that there's still room to get the car to the next level."

Q: Are you already comfortable in the car?

Bourdais: "No, I did not try. It is more beneficial to run and stop and talk about it. I think there is already enough new things, so take it one step at a time. It worked very good. I had a very good relationship with [engineer] Stefano [Soldo], and I am very much looking forward to tomorrow.

"lap times-wise, it was not representative of what I can do on the last run. For me, it was good, but we could only use limited number of sets, so I had one to start, one at lunch-time, and the other at the end.

"I set my best just before lunch-time. We had a descent run, but I missed the adjustment. I thought the car was going to be still understeery, but it was in fact neutral. And on the last run I made a mistake."

Q: So you have a lot to take in at night, between the testing days...

Bourdais: "I will have a good night sleep, and to be able to integrate all the data and the adjustments out there, hopefully I can have a nice progression.

"The track is getting better all the time - the track was super dusty, so if you have one wheel off the racing line, it is not forgiving, just your rear gets screwed in the next corner, so either you try and lose the car, or back off. But just one lap on the new tyres is hard."