Text from an interview with Chris Balfe, editor of "PITPASS.COM" the latest, hottest F1, GP2, GP2 Asia & A1GP news.

Champion-in-Waiting?
03/01/2004

We're in the foyer of a smart Knightsbridge hotel, ironically just a few hundred yards from the headquarters of Bernie Ecclestone's F1 empire.Outside, and ignoring the chill December weather, shoppers are grimly searching for that last minute Christmas gift. Inside, up and coming racer Charles Hall has no doubt about what he wants for Christmas, an F1 drive, but more of that later, first off I wanted to know what got the Sheffield-born youngster into motor sport in the first place.

"Basically it was my dad," he replies, smiling. "He started off with boats then got into cars and I've grown up with that, surrounded by engines of one sort or another.
"I built my own go-kart," he continues, "it was out of some bits lying about in the garage and it was then I discovered that speed was enjoyable and it grew from there.

Charles then reveals how he struggled at school as a result of dyslexia - though that didn't stop Jackie Stewart becoming one of the most successful race drivers in motor sport history. A teacher spotted the problem and advised Charles' parents that the youngster needed a hobby to fill his spare time and take his mind off the frustration of dyslexia. As it happened a family friend managed a local indoor kart track and Charles was subsequently invited along to have a go, just for fun.

"It was purely for fun," he says. "Even until I moved into my first season of car racing (1997) it was always for fun.
"I'd done karts," he continues, "I'd become a seeded British driver. I'd won various titles with poor equipment then finally I got sponsored and it progressed from there. I've got here because it's something I wanted to do, something I enjoy doing. It's never been a job, it's been a pleasure, a passion.

We return to the subject of the man who introduced him to motor sport, his dad: "He stopped four or five years ago," says Charles. "He had competed in the Thoroughbred Grand Prix cars (TGP) and later the BOSS Series, which gave me the opportunity to drive a couple of the cars."
At this point Charles reveals that he got to drive the Harvey Postlethwaite designed Fittipaldi F8 at Donington in 2001: "I did twelve laps," he says, grinning broadly, "and my best time would have been good enough for pole position. It was great, even though the skirts had to be 4cm off the floor you could still feel the ground-effects."

2003 has been a great year for the youngster:
"Yes, It's been a successful year," he says. "It's been a mixture of different disciplines, lots of racing which has helped me a lot, certainly in relation to the championship I've been competing in, in America (Fran-Am).
"I've been fortunate enough to race at Monaco in the V6 and of course Sportscars at Monza, where we had a second which was brilliant. Overall it's been a case of putting it all together and making it a tighter package, which has taught me to drive for the championship, to win races.
"You can't buy experience," he says leaning again forward to emphasise the point, "you have to put yourself in the position to do it. Basically I've come away feeling very happy and looking forward to moving on."

I ask him what his 2003 racing highlight was, he replies without even the merest hint of hesitation: "The opportunity to prove to myself, to prove that I can drive World Sportscars, V6 and so on. The hardest thing is coming back down a level in this sport but I won the World Winter Series in America and I've come through a tough year in Fran-Am. I've proved I can do it and the main thing is I've proved it to myself."
And what was the toughest thing in 2003?: "After testing at Paul Ricard, then racing the V6 at Monaco, to then basically come back down a level. It's all very professional, but once you've had a taste of the big time you want to stay there," he says, his eyes glinting at the thought.

Even Michael Schumacher admits to learning something new almost every day, I ask Charles what he considers to be the most important lesson he's learned this season.
"Control," he responds without hesitation. "To discover what helps you move up the levels and what keeps you there. To appreciate how important the people you work with are to you.
"I'm just one of the links in the chain that will get me to the top," he adds, "therefore it's about continuity, keeping all the right people around you."
And now the big question, what does he feel is the next logical step in his career. Once again I'm struck by the fact that there's not the merest hint of a pause, no need to stop to consider his answer, he knows:
"I've now proved to myself, and if there are people involved in F1 listening, I am ready to be up there," he replies. "I don't want to simply jump in at the deep end, I feel I am ready for a test role, in fact I know I can make a better initial impact on the sport as a test driver rather than trying to go in as a full-time driver."

Whilst not wishing to shoot him down in flames I state the obvious: "Some people might say that you want to make, what is clearly a massive jump, far too early and that perhaps you should be focussing on F3000, at least in 2004."
"If I have to do F3000 I'll do it," he fires back, "and I'm confident I can do very well, but in many ways I feel I can make the jump straight into F1, at least as a test driver. Ideally I'd like a year where I'm involved, but not in the limelight. "I'm ready to learn more," he adds, "and I feel I'm at a stage in my career where I can handle it."

A few years ago people would have laughed at the idea of making such a move so early on in a racing career, however first Kimi Raikkonen then Felipe Massa have proved that it can be done. "Have you had any approaches from F1 teams?" I ask.

"Firstly it's good that Kimi has gone straight from Formula Renault, where I am, to F1 and is recognised as a future World Champion, in fact he only just missed it this year. Knowing that it has given us the confidence to approach a couple of teams, and in the same way a couple have come to us."
"You've beaten Kimi?" I interrupt, reminding him of the obvious: "I was the first of only two drivers to overtake him for the lead in the Formula Renault Championship. He's a prime example, a brilliant driver but I've previously proved I can match his speed.
"I also raced Takuma (Sato) in the Formula Vauxhall Opel Euroseries," he adds, "we had some great races and I beat him more times than he beat me. At the time he was just another driver, but now look at him, he's in F1 (with BAR). The same goes for Justin Wilson, I've raced Justin and I can beat him."

While we're in the process of dropping names: "Gianmaria Bruni who has signed for Minardi, you've raced him?" I ask. "I've raced Gianmaria a couple of times," Charles replies, "sadly never for a whole championship. I've beaten him and now he's signed with an F1 team. We're getting there."
"So the dream is an F1 test role?" I ask. "If I'm totally honest, what I'd really like is to be third driver at a team like Minardi or Jordan in 2004," he replies. "I believe it would be the perfect environment to come in and find my F1 feet."
I ask Charles what sort of feedback he's received, and also - despite knowing the answer - if he has encountered any major obstacles?
"The only obstacle is finance," he replies, confirming my suspicions, "it's the money that's holding me back. I'm talking to people that are impressed with my CV, who are taking me seriously, but it comes back down to money."
"As a racer how do you feel about the fact that it seems that it is all about money rather than talent these days, that some people are getting drives based on their finances rather than on merit."
"Naturally it's disappointing," he replies. "I think F1 has to sit back and look at itself right now because this situation is going to hold the sport back from being what it should be. The public is now beginning to realise that it's money that's often putting drivers in the car, not necessarily talent. In the long run this can only hurt the sport."

"Is F1 the be all and end all?" I ask. "As an example, early in 2003 we had Jos Verstappen and Christijan Albers both vying for the Minardi seat. Jos got the drive and Christijan went to DTM where he's getting paid - thus making him a professional racing driver - whereas others would rather pay to be in F1 because they see it as 'the ultimate'." "Personally, if you're a real racer, where your heart lies and where you always dream of being is F1," says Charles. "For me, becoming a DTM driver is a few more years down the line, I'm not prepared to accept that not yet, F1 is where I want to be, it's the only place I want to be. pitpass is read by a number of F1 insiders, therefore assuming a couple of team bosses or prospective sponsors are reading this, what would Charles' message be?
"Talk to me," he says. "I know you'll like what you hear and what you see. You'll like my attitude, I know how hard it is to get there, on merit rather than the cheque book, so just talk to me."
During the course of the interview there are times when Charles is clearly a little nervous and subsequently he apologises. I make it clear that this is not a problem because he humanises the interview, I explain that there's nothing worse than a stone-cold 'PR-type' interview where the interviewee answers by rote or simply refuses to give anything away. For me it's vital that an interview gives something of the person's personality and that it should come across as a conversation rather than a prosaic, formal question and answer session."
Charles perks up at the mention of the word 'personality': "If you look at Coulthard or Raikkonen, when they're angry they hold it back," he says, "how they come across isn't really natural, not if you're a racer.
"I think that's sad. The public wants to know what sort of emotions drivers are experiencing and all too often it doesn't come across. Naturally we have to handle our emotions but it's only human that we get angry or upset and to a certain degree the public should be allowed to see this. Same as when you're happy, show it!
Clearly we've hit a nerve, the youngster is in full flow: "It's all about passion," he says, again leaning forward to drive the point home, "don't act angry or happy, be it!
"I just feel that some drivers are like puppets," he continues, "with too many people pulling their strings and telling them what to do. Certainly learn and do the right thing, but be yourself."

At this point Charles' manager Robert Lewis joins us, I ask why he feels F1 should be taking Charles seriously: "Just look at his CV this year," he replies, "look at the results."
I ask how they met?: "I was a guest of David Sears (Super Nova Racing) at the British GP a couple of years back," he replies. "I was looking to get involved in the sport again having raced in the late 70s and early 80s, and when I was introduced to Charles it was like a 'hole in one', right from the outset I was impressed with him. I fully believe he will go all the way.
"My job is to put the finances in place," he continues, "but then again there has to be a balance between finance and talent, it's no use having a stack-load of money and no talent, and by the same token it's no longer any use simply having masses of talent but no cash. However to be fair it's the same for everyone else out there. The $64,000 question, how does one raise the necessary money?
"I think the days of pure sponsorship are long gone," he replies. "With just a few exceptions, and certainly in the current climate, it's becoming more and more difficult for drivers to bring 'corporates' into F1. Therefore the way we're dealing with this is by giving a small number of individuals an 'interest' in Charles' career, and as a result we do have some fairly serious individuals on board. That said, this year there appear to be quite a few drivers with substantial budgets, which is a fairly unusual situation, but we're still looking to get him into a test seat for next year.
"When he was invited to drive the Ascari at Monza this year, he simply jumped in the car, despite the carbon fibre brakes, the extra power and so on, and was immediately on the pace. I'd love to see him in the test seat at Minardi for example and see how he fares against Bruni and Baumgartner."

"Why the apparent rush to get Charles into an F1 test seat for 2004?" I ask.
"As we all know there's going to be a real merry-go-round for the 2005 season when a lot of driver contracts come up for renewal. If Charles can have a good season as tester in 2004 I am confident he could take advantage and grab a 'first division' drive for 2005."
Assuming a worst case scenario, if the F1 test role doesn't happen what else is on the agenda? "We've looked at the Renault V6 series," he reveals, "and we're definitely thinking about that, however the other realistic option is F3000. It's a pity that the proposed F2 series isn't happening next year because that would have meant a more level playing field, as it is F3000 is a two-year programme.
"Whatever he does," Robert continues, "there's no fear, we know he can handle it. It's just a question of all the pieces falling into place, maybe even a little bit of 'lady luck'. "The thing with Charles is that he can really pull it out of the hat, find that something extra, when necessary. He did it in St Petersburg when he won the Winter World Series against all the odds. A driver needs immense talent, but he also needs that something extra, that something that we can never quite put our finger on.
"The win at St Petersburg," he says, reflecting on what was clearly his highlight of Charles' 2003 season. "It was the last race of a five-race championship. Charles had to win whilst his rival only had to finish in the top nine. In the end the pressure got to the other guy while Charles remained ice-cool and professional, doing all that was needed. That was satisfying.
At this point Charles points out that most of the leading lights in the British Formula Renault - including 2003 McLaren Autosport BRDC Young Driver Award winner Alex Lloyd - contested the Fran-Am Winter Series. This in turn laid the foundations for going back to the States and doing the Fran-Am series in which Charles came so close to pulling off a remarkable victory.
As his manager I ask Robert if there's a message he wants to send out to the F1 pitlane: "Don't miss him," he shoots back. "He's the complete package and he can and will go all the way.

"He's professional, he's marketable - and make no mistake that does come into the equation because we live in a highly commercial environment - but more importantly he's a real racer. There are guys out there that can race but can't qualify, others that can qualify but can't deliver, this year I think we've proved that when the chips are down, under the most immense pressure, this guy can and does deliver," he adds looking across at the youngster.
"As soon as we can get his arse in an F1 seat the talking will stop and the driving starts," he adds. "Then people will realise. We're absolutely confident - and we'll put our money where our mouth is - Charles is the next great British driver."
We headed out into the December cold and made our way towards Knightsbridge station slowly working our way along streets packed with anxious shoppers. A couple of times I caught sight of girls giving Charles an admiring look, though the youngster remained oblivious.
Although he's got a keen eye for the ladies it's not their attention Charles is seeking at this time, rather a glance - and maybe even a phone call - from Paul, Eddie, Flavio, Frank or Ron.

Chris Balfe
Editor