Davide Rigon now knows how the Ferrari behaves in reality

Ferrari driver Davide Rigon was finally able to leave the Maranello simulator to hit the track in the Ferrari F2012, traditionally driven by Fernando Alonso and Felipe Massa. The Italian, who recorded the third fastest time on the second day of the Young Drivers Test at Magny-Cours, believes that the 165 laps he completed today will be beneficial for both him and Ferrari: « It was a good day with a lot of laps for me. This is my first time in this fantastic car. My job was to compare the work I do in the simulator and understand the differences when actually driving. » For this, the Italian reveals that he first “discovered” the circuit in the simulator to make the comparison possible: « Today, with all the laps I completed, I now have the opportunity to improve, even if just a little, the simulator and also my sensations to try to provide as much information as possible. Now I know how the car behaves in reality! »

But upon arriving at Magny-Cours, the native of Thiene, who had never before taken the wheel during a track test session, was not coming in completely blind, having twice won the SuperLeague Formula championship, which notably stopped in the Nièvre: « I came to Magny-Cours twice and I really enjoy the circuit. I went there for other categories, but in Formula One, honestly, it was truly incredible! I was laughing during my first lap but then I focused on my work. But it’s really a great circuit, with fast corners, chicanes, slow turns: it’s quite a complete circuit. »

In any case, in the evening of a busy day, the Italian made a good impression by driving the F2012, showing fairly good speed and some consistency in his stints: « In the morning, the first laps, it was about doing aerodynamic measurements and giving me time to “learn” the circuit. We worked a lot in the morning, especially on aerodynamics. In the afternoon, we focused on adjusting settings over fairly long stints. We changed a lot of things on the car, nothing special, but we tried to see exactly what the car can do in the future. We got good feedback because the track conditions were very “stable,” so now we have good information. »

However, while no Italian was at the start of the last Italian Grand Prix, a first in over 40 years, it’s difficult to say if Davide Rigon will or could have been the successor to Jarno Trulli and Vitantonio Liuzzi. Indeed, in 2011, the Italian was involved in an accident during the inaugural round of the GP2 Series championship in Turkey, during which he suffered multiple fractures: « Obviously, I really have to thank Ferrari because, of course after the accident but also before that, they helped me a lot, they worked with me and believed in me. Due to my work in the simulator, they wanted to give me this opportunity to drive, and I really have to thank them. »

When asked what he believes are the reasons for the absence of Italian drivers in Formula One, Davide Rigon simply states that he thinks it’s primarily a sponsorship issue because there are obviously good drivers in Italy. As for whether he sees a future in Formula One: “All drivers dream of racing in Formula One, but we will see for the future. I am obviously happy with the work I am doing for Ferrari, I want to continue like this but also keep pushing. We’ll see.”