Alesi dreams of son Giuliano driving for Ferrari in future
abu dhabi — Frenchman Jean Alesi has a dream, a dream of seeing his son Giuliano follow in his footsteps and eventually drive for his beloved Ferrari but the former F1 driver doesn’t want to put him under any kind of pressure.
Alesi, who raced alongside greats like four-time world champion Alain Prost at Ferrari and against McLaren’s Ayrton Senna in the 90s and early noughties, is guiding his Giuliano through the different rungs of motorsport before he knocks on the doors of Formula One.
But the 54-year-old, who also raced for Tyrrell, Benetton, Sauber, Prost, Jordan and had 201 starts, hopes that Giuliano can stay focussed and keep his feet firmly planted on the ground.
“It is fantastic to see my son in motor sports because it is my life,” Alesi said of Giuliano, who is currently racing in the GP3 Series.
“He grew up in this environment and now he is racer and wants to perform. The quality of the championship and the level is high. So he had some good races and mistakes but he is going well,” he added.
Giuliano’s initiation into the sport came a bit late as compared to the others with him taking up go karting as a 13-year-old before moving on to the French F4 Championship.
“I kept pushing him all the time but he didn’t want to and started a bit late. So, I was waiting for him to decide and when he decided about it, he was 13-years-old. Normally, kids start at eight years old in karting. I think he is catching up and is okay,” said Alesi.
After three seasons in GP3, Giuliano will take another leap by driving in Formula 2 with the same, team Trident, and Alesi is feeling quite positive.
“Next year he will be in Formula 2 as he has already signed with Trident. The main challenge is to not lose anytime and immediately understand the new car and on how to use the tyres. He just turned 19 and has matured so I’m very positive for next year,” he said.
Another good thing going for Giuliano is that he is part of the Ferrari Driver Academy and Alesi believes that it will be a great learning experience for his son.
“I told my son the easiest part is the driving and the more difficult part is to keep the focus. Not to think about too many things and too far. He is in the Ferrari academy and lives in Maranello. Every day he is seeing the story of Ferrari when he is goes to the office but he needs to focus on his F2 and think about it,” Alesi said.
“I put him in good environment but I need to back off and not put any pressure. I’m just waiting and when he needs advise then I’m here. Ferrari Academy teaches everything,” he added.