Jules Bianchi keeps his feet on the ground regarding Marussia and Ferrari

Following his ousting from Marussia at the beginning of the season, Luiz Razia acknowledged that Bianchi experienced a difficult situation and, to be honest, he deserves his seat. It is indeed clear, after the first two Grand Prix, that the French driver has proved his predecessor right, to the point where he is considered today by many observers as the revelation of the start of the 2013 championship: I think he is impressing a lot of people right now, said Graeme Lowdon, the sporting director of the Marussia team. He doesn’t make mistakes. He had some problems on the formation lap in Malaysia, but that was true for everyone. He went wide but like four or five cars.

The Frenchman’s performance is all the more impressive considering he had to find his bearings within a new team, with a car he was almost completely unfamiliar with, and on two circuits, in Melbourne and Sepang, where he had never raced, whether in the GP2 Series or GP2 Asia. This bodes well for the best right from the Bahrain Grand Prix, where the Frenchman, like most rookies, will arrive on circuits he is more familiar with due to his experience in lower categories: “I don’t want to say I’m going to gain a second or something like that, I’m being realistic,” the Frenchman confided to Autosport. “In Melbourne, I was ready at 90 or 95% and I already felt really confident in the car. In Spain, when we have everything together and bring new parts to the car, we will be at 100%. My driving is already good but I still have to work on it, and maybe I will find a tenth on my side, which would be great. It’s just a matter of having confidence in the car as we haven’t driven much [during pre-season testing, editor’s note].”

Even though he admits to being surprised by his performances, Jules Bianchi notes in an interview with Sky Sports that he nonetheless benefited from good preparation before reaching the pinnacle of motor sports: “I am used to driving in Formula 1 because I spent the whole of last season with Force India and I also did tests in Jerez and Barcelona. So it wasn’t something new for me, even though I’m a rookie and I still have a lot of things to learn, but the experience I have has helped me a lot.” And the Frenchman adds: “It was very good, really easy because Marussia is like a small family. I feel very comfortable with them after two races, even though after a day of testing in Barcelona, I already felt really good. It is a team with which it is easy to work.”

However, in light of his performances in Australia and Malaysia, some are already beginning to regret that Jules Bianchi cannot showcase his talent at the wheel of a more competitive single-seater. The Nice-born driver, however, remains quite confident about the upcoming progress of the small Anglo-Russian team: « I am optimistic because every time we bring something new, it has always improved the situation. Now, we have to see what happens when we bring the new parts to the car and if we have the opportunity to close the gap with the midfield. It’s an encouraging start to the season. »

The day after the Malaysian Grand Prix, Andy Webb, the executive director of the Anglo-Russian team, was also very optimistic, to the point of playing the bookmakers: “If I were a bettor, I would bet on the fact that we will beat Caterham this season. And I would also recommend betting on the fact that Marussia will score its first points this season.” The Frenchman remains more cautious: “We have to be realistic. I think it will be difficult because we still lack performance, but if we are able to, then we will do it and our goal will obviously be to score our first points this year,” he analyzes for Sky Sports.

In the meantime, Jules Bianchi sets himself the goal of finishing each of his races: I know that [scoring points] will be really difficult, so I’m going to try to gain as much experience as possible by finishing every race I can. The Frenchman is not letting the chorus of praise currently showering over him go to his head: I’m trying to do my best, but you never know what will happen. Every sport is the same: one day you’re on top, the next you’re down in the dumps. You just have to work as hard as possible all the time and not think you’ve reached your goal. Obviously, I’m going to try to keep my momentum and even improve as much as I can. And he adds: I continue to talk to Ferrari, as I’m part of their Drivers Academy. So of course, they’re watching what I do but I don’t want to put additional pressure on myself: I’m with Marussia for the moment, I want to do a good job for them and then […] we’ll see what happens next year, but I would be happy to stay with Marussia.

Indeed, given the start of the season by Bianchi and the equally remarkable one by Felipe Massa, it does not seem inconceivable that Scuderia Ferrari would continue the adventure with the Brazilian in 2014 while nurturing the Frenchman so that he could take over in 2015, with two seasons of experience at Marussia: « Yes, I think that every driver, when in Formula 1, is one of the best drivers in the world and can therefore land in a top team like Ferrari. I think one just needs more experience when they are young. »