Contributed
Buemí is the driver slated to run the Red Bull F1 car through the streets of New Kingston.

Mario James, Gleaner Writer

IT IS rare to be 20 years old and be near the top of your game. It takes talent, but even more than that, an ability to focus and get things done. Sébastian Buemí is Red Bull F1's reserve driver. And he is just itching for a season drive.

Born in 1988, he and my Ford Bronco II are the same age. (Damn, where has all that time gone?)

Courtesy of Red Bull, Automotives got a chance to speak with Buemí only too briefly, as he is the driver slated to whip the Red Bull RB1 into a frenzy around the streets of New Kingston, come May 4. He is from Switzerland, a place where there isn't much racing. But his credentials speak for themselves, having bagged the runner-up position in the 2008 GP2 Asia Series. His crowning achievement, though, is the test he got with Adrian Newey's RB3 F1 car last September, where he had the third-fastest time for the day, besting the likes of Rubens Barichello (Honda) and Piquet Jr (Renault), and on that showing he is now the Red Bull number three.

(The inevitable first question): Your profile shows that you have progressed through the ranks of Motorsport: from karting through Formula BMW, Formula 3 and finally GP2, where you are still active. How difficult has it been?

It wasn't easy. I've been active in karts since age four, but it was more like a hobby then. My parents used it as measure to focus me when my schoolwork was not so good. Then at around age 10, I got competitive and had to compete in Italy to sharpen my skills, and then came the European championship ... there isn't much of a racing programme in Switzerland. Academics have always been important to me, so it has always been a struggle to achieve balance. Between that and being a competitive race driver was not easy. I have to thank Red Bull racing for having been there when I needed it.

Interesting. You are saying that your homeland does not have much of a racing programme?

No, racing is not very big there. Most of my younger days in karting were done in Switzerland, but as I got more competitive, I had to go abroad to find meets to participate in.

You have driven all of the most challenging formulas in the world. What was it like to transit from a GP2 car to the ultimate, Formula1?

The biggest difference is electronics. For someone moving from a lesser car to F1, the driver aids take a bit of getting used to. I thought that the brakes or the power would be worlds away in formula1. But I found that the brakes on GP2 and the power are not that far off. The aero in F1, though, makes a lot of difference. It is possible to brake much harder into the corners because of it. Also, in the mid- to high-speed corners, the F1 car is more stable, again because of aero. So while the numbers are within shouting distance, you get that much more out of the F1 tub because you are able to use the power more effectively. The weight of the GP2 car is also greater, so transient manoeuvres like chicane work are better in the F1 chassis.

Your teammates are David Coulthard and Mark Weber, both legends in their own right, and very experienced. What is your relationship like with them?

I am fighting to get their seats, and they are under pressure to keep them. It is a very competitive atmosphere, and that keeps an edge between us, I guess. We keep it professional, though.