Adam Carroll has said he believes he could fight for the Formula One World Championship if given the chance to do so.
A1GP title winner says he has what it takes
Adam Carroll has said he believes he could fight for the Formula One world championship if given the chance to do so.
The 26-year-old from Portadown confirmed recently he had been approached by two F1 teams regarding the possibility of a seat in 2010.
And Carroll hardly did his career a disservice at the weekend by wrapping up this season's A1GP title for Team Ireland at Brands Hatch.
His chances of reaching F1 will have been given a boost with last week's announcement that, with the FIA proposing a budget cap of £40million from next year, the grid could be boosted by the addition of three more teams.
If not F1 then Carroll would also consider an Indycar ride Stateside, saying: "You have to sit back and look at the fact Andretti Green are in this (A1GP) championship with Team USA.
"My plan was to win this and hopefully go and sit at a table with guys like them.
"They know me now. I've met them, and every weekend they've watched me drive.
"That's been very good, and if opportunities in America open up, that would be very good.
"In F1, again, I know people do rate me. I've proven that any doubts they have ever had, they don't need to have.
"I knew they didn't, but you still have to go and prove yourself in life - I can qualify, I can race, I can overtake and I can win.
"I believe I am a strong enough package that given the right opportunity, I can fight for the world championship in Formula One."
Experience
Having contested both GP2 as well as A1GP and the German DTM series, Carroll certainly has the experience to race in F1.
He raced in F1's feeder series between 2005 and 2008, meaning he has competed against the likes of Lewis Hamilton, Nico Rosberg, Nelson Piquet Jr., Heikki Kovalainen and Timo Glock.
However, unlike them, his campaigns have been blighted by a lack of finance.
"I've beaten most of the guys on their way there, and hopefully they would say the same about me if asked the question," Carroll told
www.gpweek.com.
"I know my situation is not like theirs. It's been different, and it's made me into the person and driver I am today.
"But I'm ready to do the job."
