FBMW: Champion Frijns weighing up F2 switch

Formula BMW Europe champion Robin Frijns is weighing up a switch to the FIA Formula 2 championship in 2011.

The Dutch driver sealed this year's FBMW crown at the Monza finale, edging out season-long rival Jack Harvey. The British driver, who is backed by the Racing Steps Foundation, has subsequently confirmed a switch to British F3 with the crack Carlin squad for 2011 whilst Frijns, who lacks a major backer, recently admitted that his plans are unsure due to budget limitations.

Frijns recently tested the F2 car, and with the championship costing a fraction of rivals GP2, GP3 and Formula Renault 3.5, whilst also offering a day of testing with the Williams F1 team to the series champion, the 19-year-old has admitted it is a viable option for next year.

"I enjoyed the whole day," Frijns told Autosport following the test. "It's a world of change, from FBMW with 150bhp to F2 with 425bhp. You have to drive completely differently, you have to be very smooth with the steering and the throttle, and in the first session I was just working on that because I was struggling to find the traction.

Frijins was also positive about the open nature of the championship, where all cars are run by series organisers Motorsport Vision,

"Getting all the data from the fastest driver was a really good thing though. If you look at the [Formula 3] Euro Series for example, everybody drives with a different engine and for me that's not fair: you just have to be with a good team or you have no chance at all."

"If you look at the statistics, the car is quite impressive and the championship is great value. As a driver, if you're good you're going to be at the front. The biggest problem of course is finding a budget, but I'm considering everything - we'll look at the situation in the winter and see how it goes."


James Weeks.