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Rossi and Daly have beaten the odds partly because they are not your typical American drivers. Rossi is a reserve driver for Caterham and drives for them in the series GP2 which is a notch below F1. Daly drives in a lesser, GP3 series with ART Grand Prix.
Both grew up on F1 - Rossi watching as a 6-year-old with his father - and Daly benefiting from the stories a father, Derek, who raced in F1 from 1978 to 1982. They also raced in Europe at a young age which Whitmarsh and others recommend. Rossi moved to Italy at 16 to pursue his F1 dream while the 21-year-old Daly first raced as a 16-year-old in Europe before moving there in 2011.
The duo also have the belief they will make it to F1 - emboldened by the success they have had so far. Daly won a race in Barcelona last year and again this year in Valencia and sits fifth in the GP3 standings. Rossi joined Caterham in 2011 as a test driver and was named a reserve driver this year. He then replaced Chinese reserve driver Ma Qing Hua in GP2 after the opening race in Malaysia and placed third place in Bahrain.
"When we were able to come over here and win races and qualify on pole, it justified that we can do it too. That is what has been encouraging," Daly said.
"Rossi has been great so far and he has done an awesome job and he has kind of gotten there with Caterham already," he said. "It's not just one American we want in F1. It's as many as we can get. Right now, it's just us two that at least have made it into Formula One cars and are kind of getting there."
The two also understand the significance of becoming the next American on the grid. They have already witnessed a few flag-waving Americans at European races and the kind of support that comes across Twitter and Facebook when they win races. Doing that in Austin or New Jersey, they said, would be special.
"It would mean everything not only to be an American on the grid but to be an American on the grid as Formula One starts to rebuild an audience in America," Rossi said. "The timing would be amazing."
Noting the buzz he saw for Brit Lewis Hamilton at the British GP and Spaniard Fernando Alonso at the Spanish GP, Daly said an American race needs a homegrown driver.
"In America, we have a race. Any drivers? No. Was there a good crowd? Absolutely, it's a great venue Austin and the track is incredible. But in reality, who do Americans have to cheer for?" he said. "It's like the Olympics. When you watch the Olympics, you want to see Americans do well."
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