Two years ago, Pato O’Ward said there was a deadline to consider the possibility of reaching Formula 1. Now that he is 26 and has established himself as one of the benchmarks in IndyCar, that deadline has passed; however, the Arrow McLaren driver has also lost interest in the F1 due to the new cars and rules.
In an interview with FOX Deportes ahead of this weekend’s Long Beach race, the IndyCar star was blunt in questioning whether the pinnacle of motorsport remains his primary objective.
“Is Formula 1 still a dream?” the Mexican was asked. O’Ward replied: “Every year it has changed more… honestly, the new Formula 1 cars—what the series has done has been a mistake. The truth is, when you look at them, they are artificial.”
“It’s not Mario Kart”: Criticism of current technology
For O’Ward, the hunger to reach F1 was never linked to the spotlight or the bank account, but rather to the purity of driving—something that, in his words, has been diluted, but which he still enjoys in IndyCar.
“The hunger I had to get to Formula 1 wasn’t for fame or money… it was because the cars were something impressive; driving those cars was something impressive,” he recalled regarding the “essence” he feels has been lost year after year.
One of Pato’s fiercest criticisms centered on the complexity of driving and the use of electronic systems to facilitate overtaking, comparing the current experience to a console game, as other drivers have previously done.
“You don’t want to be flipping a switch to say, ‘Oh, I’m going to press it to pass him artificially.’ It’s not Mario Kart; we’re racing here. Honestly, I have zero desire to be part of that,” he explained, emphasizing that a driver seeks to push the limit in braking and fast corners, “not for the car to decelerate at the end of the straight” due to energy management.
O’Ward made it clear that IndyCar offers exactly the driving style he enjoys. For him, the American category currently provides what F1 has sacrificed in favor of the visual spectacle.
“I feel that right now, today, this is the best series for a driver who wants to race—here, in IndyCar… Formula 1 right now is an artificial show, and honestly, I have zero desire for it; it doesn’t grab my attention.”
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