Sir Jackie Stewart has tipped Paul di Resta to become the latest in a long line of successful Scottish racing drivers. The Bathgate driver, who will start the 2010 Formula One season as the reserve driver for Force India, is expected to secure a driver’s seat for the 2011 campaign and Stewart, speaking in an interview with STV Sports Centre which will be broadcast on Friday March 12 at 10.35pm, predicts a bright future for the young Scot.
David Coulthard was the last Scottish participant in Formula One before he retired from the sport in 2008. Stewart remains the most successful however, having raced away with the championship title in 1969, 1971 and 1973.
Those accolades qualify Stewart as an authority on up-and-coming drivers who will taste success and the Flying Scot believes that di Resta has what it takes to emerge as the next great Scottish driver in the sport.
“Scotland has been very rich in its drivers,” said Stewart. “From the early days of sports car racing, people winning Le Mans, Ron Flockhart, John Lawrence, my brother Jimmy, Ian Stewart, Bill Dobson - a whole lot of really top racing drivers.
“Then came Innes Ireland to win the first Grand Prix for a Scot, then Jim Clark was the best racing driver I ever raced against, a man of enormous skill.
“Now Paul di Resta is arriving on the scene and, although he hasn't got a full drive yet in Formula One, he is the test driver.
“He's won races and he is a serious contender. I think he is going to be very good and I think it would be great to have another Scot in Formula One.”
At 23, di Resta – who is the cousin of IndyCar legend Dario Franchitti – has built up a wealth of driving experience as he served his apprenticeship on the way up to Formula One level.
Having started in karting at the age of seven, the young Scot moved onto Formula Renault and Formula Three, following in the footsteps of previous world champion Lewis Hamilton, before a stint the DTM Touring Car championships before his elevation to the top of the sport.
Sir Jackie believes that time gaining experiences with different cars and working with different teams will stand di Resta in good stead, saying that his dedication and success should build up Scotland’s hopes of having another sporting champion.
“Paul's already achieved championships in Germany, Formula Three European championships and the touring car races that he did in Germany,” said Stewart.
“I think his timing has been very good. When you come into Formula One and you are too young and too inexperienced, it can overwhelm you. In fact, you can lose your drive pretty quickly.
“I think when Paul comes in, he's had the right education, he's had the right background and the same building progress to get to the level he's currently at. He's already got a lot of experience and we know he's got a lot of talent, so I think we should expect good things from him.”
