After being left out in the cold by F1 and Scuderia Toro Rosso with the announcement of Carlos Sainz Jr, it now seems Vergne wants to turn his back on F1 and pursue a career stateside in Indycar for next year.
Whilst some thought Vergne would try and stay in F1 with a reserve driver role next year, or switch to the World Endurance Championship like what fellow Red Bull junior Sebastien Buemi did, it now seems Vergne wants to continue racing single seaters with a switch to Indycar.
Vergne commented in an interview with Racer magazine "I would be really interest in racing in America in IndyCar; I think it's a great championship, I'm working with a manager who works with a few drivers in America, Julian Jakobi, and at the moment, it seems like it is quite hard to go to a top team right away, but I am very interested to see what type of seats are available."
Vergne also commented on the challenges he would face by joining Indycar "I don't pretend I would win everything, or have an easy time on the ovals; it's a lot to learn coming from Europe, but many European drivers have become quite good on ovals with some experience, and with so many road courses and street races, I know I can be very effective. There aren't so many teams to go to that I can win a championship right away, but this doesn't stop me from looking and talking to team owners to see if we can do something together. I have always loved racing in America, and I have always been very interested in IndyCar. The timing is very good right now to make this happen."
Vergne clearly wants to try and race at the front for wins in the next phase of his career, which rules out a reserve driver role for next year and likely means his options are either a series like Indycar or joining the burgeoning LMP1 class of the World Endurance Championship.
In the same interview Vergne noted his desire to race at the front again in the next phase of his career. He stated "Toro Rosso isn't really a team where you can stay for a long time, even if you beat your team-mates, If I look at what Ricciardo is doing this year and what I'm doing this year, I'm confident I can do the same as him."
He also added "I'm not really bitter to leave Toro Rosso, I have some other options in Formula 1, but I want to get back into a series where I can win races and win championships. My target is to go for the IndyCar championship my first year."
It seems Vergne is happy to join a smaller team and learn his way in his first year, before eventually establishing himself as one of the premier drivers in Indycar over the next few years. This is a brave move for Vergne as he will have to learn the intricacies of oval racing next year, although over the next few years Vergne could become one of the best drivers in the series such is his talent. This move would seem beneficial for Vergne and once again shows the increasing significance of the Indycar series in attracting drivers.
What are your thoughts on this potential move for Vergne?
