Justin Wilson Q&A
With Christian Klien recently announced at Jaguar, Justin Wilson appears to have been left with limited options for 2004. While the team would like to give him a testing opportunity, the new rule that ensures that drivers with recent race experience can't do next year's Friday sessions has left him out in the cold. A return to Minardi is not out of the question, but only one seat is still available, and there's a long list of drivers who can bring funds. In retrospect it's easy to say that Wilson made a mistake by jumping to Jaguar in the middle of the year and thus risk damaging the reputation he'd built at Minardi. The on-form Mark Webber would have made life difficult for almost anybody making such a move with limited testing opportunities and new tracks to learn. However, the man himself insists that he would still be in the same boat, come what may. Adam Cooper spoke to the Brit
"Yes, just seeing how things evolve over the next two or three weeks. Hopefully we'll get something sorted out, whether it's a race drive or a test drive. We'll see what happens."
"It's nice that the team are behind me and supporting me. It's not like they've turned round and said, 'You're crap!'. They've been very supportive. In the right situation I'd like to stay working with them."
"It's unreal to be put out of the equation because of this rule. It doesn't seem to make much sense that you can be overqualified for a test drive situation."
"We'll just have to see what happens. There's a lot of talk about the new regulation. I know there are a lot of teams and drivers who want to see a change to it. It doesn't make a lot of sense. That's the only lifeline for the Friday testing. Other than that I'd ideally like to stay racing and be competing."
"We're still talking, but money is obviously the main factor at both teams."
"McLaren is full, Ferrari is full, Williams is pretty much full. Renault has cut down on test drivers and Allan McNish is no longer there. It's difficult to see where there's an opening at those teams."
"It's been a great experience, it's been very good. But like you say it was a rollercoaster ride. You have your good times and your bad times. Just getting used to everything and getting familiar with the surroundings is difficult. I was just starting to do that at Minardi when I changed to Jaguar. I was just starting to feel my way there, and in the last few races I was improving."
"Definitely not. I don't believe I'd be in any different position if I'd carried on with Minardi. It's just the circumstances, really."
"I'm pretty much focussed on the F1 at the minute, but I have thought about racing in the States for the last two or three years. It always looks interesting, but as I say I'm still focussed on F1, and seeing what the opportunities are."
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