With the home fans behind him, Wurz junior is now hoping for a turnaround. “We had a few problems, but we think we have solved them. We have a good car and will hopefully return to the top ten this weekend,” he said. In the first five races, there was only one point-scoring finish, a fifth place in Australia, and the team is hoping to score again in Styria. “Sometimes you have to have a bit of luck,” Wurz emphasised.
In qualifying on Friday, however, he could not get beyond a disappointing 26th place. He was 1.181 seconds behind British pole-setter Luke Browning, so he will need to catch up this weekend to gain any points. In the only training session before that, Wurz had set the fastest time, but only a few drivers were using the fastest set of tires.
No sport for morning grouches
The 18-year-old is hoping for a lot of support at the Red Bull Ring, even though the racing series in the Formula 1 supporting program is more suitable for early risers. The main race on Sunday takes place at 8:30 a.m., the sprint on Saturday at 9:30 a.m. “It’s very early, but hopefully a few fans will come anyway. I’m really looking forward to it, it’s going to be really cool,” said Wurz, who wants to follow in his father’s footsteps.
“I think I have the talent for it,” he stressed, adding: “I haven’t really shown how fast I can drive yet.” Father Alexander, who competed in 69 Formula 1 races, also sees the positive side of the initial difficulties in Formula 3. “It is also important for development that you learn to keep motivating yourself despite doubts and problems,” he said.
Looking for a strong team
The goal, in addition to good results, is for his son to be part of a top Formula 3 team next season. “Then you have to drive for the championship,” says the ORF expert, who is targeting the three top teams Trident, Prema and Hitech. His son is currently driving for Jenzer Motorsport and is the best of the three drivers in the Swiss team, ranking 18th.
Charlie Wurz wants to put himself in the spotlight with good results in Spielberg, also for other sponsors. “Formula 3 costs a lot, around 1.5 million euros per season,” he calculated.
