Theo Pourchaire faces a fresh challenge after his debut in IndyCar — transitioning from the streets of Long Beach to the road course at Barber Motorsports Park in Alabama.
The 20-year-old Frenchman, reigning Formula 2 champion, gets another chance to race for the injured Arrow McLaren driver David Malukas on Sunday. He moves to a different part of the country and a completely different track.
“For me, it was something new,” Pourchaire said this week after McLaren announced he would race at Barber. “It wasn’t easy to learn, but eventually, I think I adapted pretty quickly to this championship, this car, and the team.
“I still have a lot of things to learn, like for example, this weekend it’s going to be a new racetrack. “I’ll almost start from scratch. I have a bit more experience now, so I feel a bit more confident.”
Pourchaire had never driven an Indy car before last weekend’s first practice session. He qualified 22nd but finished 11th, making him IndyCar’s “biggest mover” at Long Beach, “which is amazing for my first IndyCar race.”
His entry into the American open-wheel series came with no prior track time before last Friday’s first practice at Long Beach. He had been in Indianapolis for a couple of weeks for a seat-fitting and to get to know the team, and spent one day in the Chevrolet simulator in North Carolina.
Pourchaire is still adjusting to some parts of IndyCar racing, like the longer races and various fuel strategies. He anticipates needing a few laps on the 17-turn, 2.3-mile Barber track to reach a competitive speed, starting with Friday’s initial practice session.
“I picked up a lot of things at Long Beach,” he explained. “Understanding how the car handles on a track like Long Beach was crucial for me. But it’ll be even more crucial to relearn the car, I believe, at Barber, because the track is entirely different.”
