THE McLaren IndyCar team has dramatically recalled a racing driver – a month after axing him in a brutal one-minute phone call.
French driver Theo Pourchaire raced in place of the injured Alexander Rossi for the IndyCar Series round on the streets of Toronto over the weekend – at less than 24 hours’ notice.
Theo Pourchaire traveled from France to compete for the McLaren IndyCar team in Toronto at short notice
The French driver replaced the injured Alexander Rossi
Pourchaire had been axed by Arrow McLaren just a month ago
Rossi sustained a broken right thumb during Friday’s open practice.
And Pourchaire made an epic trip from his native France to compete in qualifying on Saturday.
“Last minute call, 10 hours flight, 6 hours of jet lag, almost no sleep, first time driving in 6 weeks, straight to qualifying & new track,” Porchaire posted on social media.
“That’s a lot of problems to manage, but we made it work with Arrow McLaren!”
Pourchaire’s surprise return came just a month after he was axed by Arrow McLaren for the remainder of the season.
The 2023 Formula 2 champion reportedly said he was “disgusted” with the way he was replaced by American prospect Nolan Siegel in a “one-minute phone call.”
However, Pourchaire’s interview with motor racing AUTOhebdo has since been removed and denounced by both the driver and McLaren Racing CEO Zak Brown.
Pourchaire recalled his epic journey to get to Canada for the race.
“I would say the last 15 or 18 hours [has been] crazy,” Pourchaire told autosport.com.
“It was about midnight in France when Tony Kanaan (Arrow McLaren’s sporting director) called me.
“Of course, I saw practice one. I’m watching IndyCar every session. I saw the crash of Alex; I didn’t know he was injured. I was like, ‘Yeah, he’s getting out of the car’.
“I was at the restaurant. I told my girlfriend, ‘Maybe McLaren is going to call me if he’s injured?’
“Half an hour later, Tony is calling me. This is strange! ‘Theo, can you come as quick as possible? We need you right now in Toronto.’
“[I replied] ‘It’s midnight in France, Tony. I’m not sure I can find a flight and come quick.’ But, yeah, I’m here.
“I wish Alex a speedy recovery. I know he broke a thumb. It’s not easy to come here straight in quali, but it’s fine. I’m happy.
Rossi broke a thumb in open practice
Pourchaire said he would be willing to continue racing for the team
“I arrived one hour before quali, but everybody was really happy to see me and I was really happy to see them again. It’s good people here.”
Pourchaire had been in Indianapolis just a few days before the race prior to returning to France.
“It’s crazy because I was still in Indianapolis three days ago,” he added.
“I decided to come back to France because it’s summer and I was not racing in Indy anymore. When Tony called me, I told him, ‘I’m fine, I want to race, of course’.
“I just didn’t sleep in France. I went in the early morning to the airport, and was watching all night the onboard video and data.
“On the plane, I decided to sleep a little bit. That was not easy. Still, I could sleep maybe like four hours, five hours.
“It’s unfortunate what happened to Alex. I think his broken thumb is painful, but it’s not a big, big injury. Maybe he will be back soon.”
Pourchaire said he would be willing to continue racing for the team if Rossi does not recover from injury soon.
“In case Alex is not ready, I will be still here waiting,” he added.
“If the team calls me, of course. I’m not going to refuse racing. I love IndyCar.
“It’s a great championship. I was home waiting for more than probably four, five weeks.
“So, right now, I’m just super happy to drive. It feels like a dream.”
