Jean-Eric Vergne says he is fully focused on giving his best for Toro Rosso without thinking of the chance of landing a seat at Red Bull Racing in 2013.
The Frenchman has been moved up into F1 because his Red Bull chiefs believe he has the potential to develop into the energy drinks company’s next superstar after Sebastian Vettel.
And although the fact he and team-mate Daniel Ricciardo have the opportunity to show in 2012 that they are good enough for a seat at Red Bull Racing next year if Mark Webber does not stay on, Vergne thinks it much too early to start considering that scenario.
“First of all I am not thinking about 2013,” he said at the Jerez circuit on Tuesday. “I know all you guys maybe want to know about it, and are always talking about Red Bull because obviously there is probably a chance for 2013 with Red Bull Racing, but I will not answer these kinds of questions because I don’t want to see too far ahead.
“I am 100 per cent focused on this season, on 2012 with Toro Rosso, and I will do my best for this year. Then we will see what happens in the future.”
Although the prospect of a 2013 Red Bull seat means that Toro Rosso’s two drivers will be in tough competition against each other, Vergne does not see an intense rivalry developing between the pair of them.
“The competition with the team-mate, that is something normal,” he said. “He is the only guy who has the same car as me, so he is the best comparison.
“He is a good driver, so that will be the target of course. But the main one will be that we work really well together to get the best out of the car and get the best results out of the team.
“I think I have a really good team-mate, a strong team-mate, and we will work hard together to get the best out of the car. If we have a good car then that will already be good. But, at the moment, there is no fight. We need to work hard together and we try to get the best car.”
