Age won’t make me slower or faster: Sebastian Buemi

Sebastian Buemi’s leap in motorsports has been extraordinary. Though only 20, he has already made it to Formula One, becoming the main driver for Scuderia Toro Rosso. Buemi, who will start the 2009 season as the youngest driver, tells DNA what it means to be in F1 at such a young age.

You will be the youngest driver on the grid this season. Are you feeling any pressure?
I don’t feel any extra pressure because of my age. It won’t make me slower or faster, so I don’t think it really matters how old I am.

Your performance will inevitably be judged in comparison with that of Sebastian Vettel’s who had a fantastic outing last year. Is it tough on you?
Of course it’s tough, because Vettel did a fantastic job. He did a lot for the team and it’s difficult to do it again. But I’m definitely very motivated to do a good job.

Do you think you can match Vettel’s performance or even go one better than him?
Like I said, I want to do a good job, but it’s difficult to say now what’s possible.

How are you preparing for your debut Formula One season?
I spend a lot of time with personal trainer and we are preparing for different aspects. So far everything is going well.

What goals have you set yourself for the first season?
It is really difficult to set any goals before the first race in Australia because there will be a lot of rule changes. The cars look very different and we should wait until the first practice to see what our pace is compared to the other teams’. Then we will be able to say something about our goals.

What was your first reaction when your seat at Toro Rosso was confirmed?
It’s just been a fantastic feeling to be confirmed, especially because it has been so hard to reach it. I’ve been driving in a lot of categories until now, step by step, until the last step which is Formula 1. So I’m very happy and grateful to Red Bull, who have given me this great opportunity and I will try my best to show them that they have made the right decision.

What is your opinion about the 2009-specs Toro Rosso car?
From what I can see is that the car looks good and we are looking forward to testing it as soon as possible. But now we still need to finish some work. They are pushing really hard in Faenza and I’m sure we will have a positive opinion when we are able to test it.

You are entering F1 at a time when the sport is undergoing a big overhaul. Do you think it will be advantageous for you or are you nervous about it?
It’s always difficult. We know that the new rules will change a lot of things. I think the good teams will still be good and the teams which have some problems will still have them, so I don’t think this will really change the order. Maybe a little bit in the middle field. Hopefully we’ll have a good car and we’ll be able to test it before Melbourne and then we see what we can do.

What are you expecting from the team and vice versa?
The team is used to working with young drivers and hopefully they’ll be able to teach me a lot of things. There are still a lot of things I need to learn, so I hope they’ll be able to give me as many tools as possible in order for me to be ready for the beginning of the season. Then it will be my job to drive some good races and we try to improve together step by step.

This year your cousin sister Natasha will be participating in F2. What is it with your family and racing?
When we were young our fathers bought us a kart for Christmas and we started karting together, then drove in Formula BMW and also did some races in Formula 3 together. Now she is driving in Formula 2 and I look forward to watching her races. I hope she does well! 

Who do you idolise as a driver and why?
I would say that it’s difficult to find one driver who does everything perfectly. You need to look at different drivers, because everybody can be good in one aspect of the sport. If I have to name any drivers, it would be Hamilton, Alonso coming back to a team that was struggling and then winning again with that team, and Vettel winning a race with Toro Rosso. These are all drivers that can teach you something.