Jaime Alguersuari has revealed that he turned down a seat with a ‘top team’ after Red Bull confirmed he would be retained at Toro Rosso for 2012.
The Spaniard, who is without a drive, was dropped by the Italian outfit in favour of Daniel Ricciardo and Jean-Eric Vergne, despite the team telling him otherwise.
Having at the time been confirmed, he opted to turn down the opportunity to switch to a top team, most likely as a reserve driver, in order to remain at Toro Rosso, though the deal clearly fell through, leaving the Spaniard without any role in the sport.
“I was verbally confirmed during the Brazilian GP,” he confirmed via a press release on Monday. “Hence, being confirmed by Red Bull and STR, I rejected a very good offer.
“On December 13th, when Red Bull Racing told me that I was no longer part of the family I said that I was not going to judge them, neither was I feeling like a victim and that this was not a drama. But let me say just one thing: they hurt me, and moreover, it was unnecessary.”
When asked if Williams or HRT were options, given they both had openings at the time, he replied: “I will never pay for a seat. Today, they [Williams] only need drivers that pay.
On HRT, he added: “HRT does not have a car for me today and I cannot liquidate my heritage at my age fighting to improve a car, which of course will be far behind on the grid.
“HRT is not an option for me now. I cannot bear to be penultimate on the grid every race.”
The 21-year-old’s future does look brighter after he confirmed that he is currently in discussions with another outfit for 2012 to most likely take up the role of reserve driver.
“In January I have had some conversations which might be decisive in my future with one of the top F1 teams,” he added. “I must say that I had a very warm welcome, and they pay a lot of respect for me and we have opened a path.
“Obviously I can not reveal the nature of our intentions. All I will say is that I will be fully dedicated to F1 in 2012. My duty is being ready to deliver if the opportunity comes up. And that’s what I’m doing now.”
