Alfonso Celis, the rising Mexican driver
Alfonso Celis is currently in his third full season in the World Series Formula V8 3.5, one of the top feeder series to the highest motorsport category, and it has been a confirmation for him.
The Mexican driver won the first race in Spa-Francorchamps, Belgium, and has finished on the podium five more times throughout the six rounds of the championship (each with two races), accumulating 150 points and placing himself 13 points behind the leader, Russian Matevos Isaakyan, with three rounds remaining in the calendar.
The final stretch starts in Mexico this weekend, as part of the WEC program at the Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez, so Fonso hopes to come out strengthened from the two home races and continue fighting for the championship that would bring him closer to a seat in Formula One, where he is already a test driver for Force India.
-Would you like to leave Mexico as the leader?
Without a doubt, that's the goal, although we have to take it step by step. In the first free practice session, we need to adjust the car, understand which direction we should take for the second one, and then have the best base for qualifying, which has been our weak point this year, because we know that in the race we are good and based on that, give it our all, with a good start to try to break away; I want to win in front of my people, but if it doesn't happen, I did everything to achieve it. What I want is to leave Hermanos Rodríguez in the fight for the title and have done things right.
-Will the most challenging thing this weekend be controlling your emotions?
Of course, being such an emotional person, as soon as I see all my friends in the stands of Foro Sol, I will want to give that extra that in this sport you have to control, because you can go overboard, it's something I have to work on at a mental level.
-Do you think the Fortec Motorsports car will adapt to the Autódromo?
I think it will go well for us as a team, because of the car's setup, but until we finish the first practice, I won't have a definite opinion, also, there is rain coming and when you are fighting for the championship, you don't want it, unless you do poorly in qualifying.
-What have been the factors for this good season?
One of the keys was changing teams because I was a bit stuck, the smartest thing was to go to Fortec, which was new, but it was the first one that welcomed me in Europe at a professional level, so I didn't arrive at something unknown, I knew it was competitive. Arriving there with the experience I already had and with the right physical preparation caused everything to align.
-How much has it helped you mature as a driver?
I already had this mindset since the middle of last season, but perhaps I was somewhat disappointed because the team (AVF) bet on another driver (Tom Dillmann), because they wanted to win (he became champion); the healthiest thing was this change, although I already had the mindset, since I did the winter tests with Fortec, they gave me that value and things were easier.
-Is the dream still to reach Formula One?
Without a doubt, it's still there, but now my biggest dream is to do the best possible here, qualify first in both sessions, then win the two races and if not, be in the fight, then become champion in the World Series, which I think will happen, because I am as prepared as I can be.
-What have they told you at Force India about this performance?
They are very happy with my results and with the performances in the free practice sessions, which have been good, in Austria we had problems with the car, but in Hungary, I showed that I could be in the times, they saw the development I had, but it has helped me a lot that this year's Formula One car feels like driving one from the World Series due to the aerodynamic load; at the core, the foundations are very similar.