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Former Indy500 Champion Reveals His Plans of Possible F1 Debut With Renault

Published 07/28/2021, 5:22 AM EDT

It is no secret that every racecar driver, irrespective of which league they race in, wants to pilot a Formula One car, and why won’t they? F1 cars are the fastest in the world and go far beyond the limits of all other race cars on the track. Indy 500 champion, Simon Pagenaud, is no different, so he was obviously delighted when he got the opportunity to test for Renault, now Alpine.

Unfortunately, the Frenchman’s dream came crumbling down after the test was called off due to the pandemic.

Well, he might’ve lost the opportunity, but he hasn’t lost faith; the 37-year-old is hopeful that he will be behind the wheel of an F1 car, whether it be with Alpine or with someone else, one day.

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Pagenaud is heartbroken as his Renault F1 test gets cancelled

Speaking to RaceCafe, the host, Michael Duforest asked the Indy champion about his potential F1 drive.

Pagenaud replied, “Well no thanks to the pandemic. It was scheduled! But it was canceled because of the pandemic. It’s a shame.

“It was scheduled with Reanult, there, I said it! It was scheduled with Reanult, and I hope it still can happen, not with the objective to race, because its too late.”

Now with English subtitles! 💬
@simonpagenaud explains during our show #RacingCafé that he had the opportunity to test with an #F1 team! Check out which one! ⬇️#IndyCar pic.twitter.com/XXXcVZPOdj
— Michaël Duforest (@MDuforest) July 27, 2021

“But at least to get a feel for what an F1 car is like, and it was nice to do it with Renault, with who I started in motorsports. We’ll see, maybe it can happen in the future with Alpine or another team, maybe.

“It would have been a nice experience, it would be nice to say that I drove an F1 car!“

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Is there any room for another French driver in the team?

As of now, the only French driver at Alpine is Esteban Ocon, who has a contract with the team till 2024. Meanwhile, Fernando Alonso occupies the second seat and is rumored to get his deal extended as well. However, nothing is set in stone just yet, so Pagenaud might keep his hopes up.

Currently, the Enstone-based team sits in seventh place in the constructors’ standings with forty points, courtesy of Ocon-Alonso partnership. But do you think Alpine will go all and possibly bring Pagenaud and form an all-French driver lineup? Let us know in the comments below.

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Written by:

Arpit Gomes is an F1 author at EssentiallySports. Currently pursuing his Journalism degree from Xavier’s Institute, he is a big fan of McLaren and their driver Lando Norris and Daniel Ricciardo. Arpit always looks forward to the paddock moving to Spa and drivers dealing with the exciting Eau Rouge corner as well the straight at Monza.

Former Indy500 Champion Reveals His Plans of Possible F1 Debut With Renault

Pagenaud is heartbroken as his Renault F1 test gets cancelled

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Is there any room for another French driver in the team?