Jordan's Track Talk

Tag: Nyck de Vries

  • Mahindra announce Season 10 drivers

    Mahindra Racing has announced Season 7 ABB FIA Formula E Drivers’ World Champion, Nyck de Vries and multiple race winner, Edoardo Mortara as their all new driver line-up on multi-year contracts.

    De Vries will be making a return to Formula E after a spell in Formula 1 with Williams and Scuderia AlphaTauri which followed the Dutchman’s run to becoming the series’ inaugural World Champion in Season 7.

    Mahindra see de Vries, a champion and four-time race winner, as an “essential asset” in driving the team back towards title contention over the seasons to come.

    Also key to its push towards the front of the grid will be the team’s second new signing Edoardo Mortara.

    The Swiss-Italian made his Formula E debut in Hong Kong back in 2017, and made an immediate impact where he scored a podium with second place on his first weekend in the category.
    He took a maiden victory at the same venue a year later and has since added five further triumphs plus six additional podiums to his CV.

    Mortara most recently race for Maserati MSG Racing, scoring seven points finishes across the inaugural Gen3 campaign and on the way to 14th in the Drivers’ standings.

    It’s really exciting to be joining such a major automotive manufacturer as Mahindra, and to represent them in Formula E. I’m particularly excited about the future plans for the team. The basis is already strong, and the team has all the attributes to succeed. I believe going forwards, we will be able to extract even more potential from the project and the organisation – to be a part of that process was very appealing for me. I think it’s no secret that the team has had a bit of a rough start to GEN3, although there were positive signs of improvement during the second half of last season. I believe the team can continue to build on those learnings, and with the additional changes and plans in place for the future, we can make even greater steps forward in performance at the start of our new journey together. Coming back to Formula E will feel like coming home. I’ve been part of the Formula E family for three seasons, I know everybody very well. I’m looking forward to being back in a familiar environment, and to be back somewhere where ultimately, I’ve always enjoyed my racing.

    De Vries on his return.

    I’m extremely excited to be joining Mahindra Racing. It’s a team that I’ve been looking at for several years now, they have been in Formula E since the beginning of the Championship, so there’s a lot of experience there. What I could also feel from the people here is that we share the same values. We have a great project in front of us, but I can see a lot of determination and motivation from everyone in the team, and this is so important. Mahindra is also such a big automotive manufacturer, with a worldwide reputation. I’m extremely proud to join and be a representative of this prestigious group. I can’t wait to get started, and I’m sure that, if we put in the necessary amount of work, we will be able to be successful in this very competitive championship in the future.

    Mortara on the news.

    I am delighted to welcome Edo and Nyck to the Mahindra Racing family. As a team, we are all embarking on a journey to bring Mahindra Racing back to the front of the grid in the coming years. With their speed and experience, Nyck and Edo will play a key role in driving the team towards that goal, and I know everybody is feeling very motivated to work with them. Equally important for the team are the drivers’ appetites for a long-term project, which makes them the perfect fit for Mahindra Racing at the beginning of this journey. We anticipate next year will be another year of development and progress, and in a championship like Formula E, success is impossible to achieve overnight. But the signing of Nyck and Edo, along with new recruits within the wider team, puts down a solid foundation on which we can build. Much as Mahindra Automotive seeks to lead a revolution in the commercial space, we aim to match that ambition and innovation on the track. The support and synergy across the brand between both programmes will be invaluable as we aim to similarly make progress on-track.

    Fred Bertrand, Mahindra Racing CEO.

  • Ricciardo replaces De Vries at Alpha Tauri

    Daniel Ricciardo will be making a return to the Formula 1 grid as he will be replacing Nyck de Vries at Alpha Tauri for the rest of the season.

    The Australian driver has been in action today at Silverstone, driving Red Bull’s current RB19 car in a Pirelli tyre test. But it’s now been announced that Ricciardo – currently Red Bull’s third driver will be on loan from Hungary for AT.

    Dutch driver De Vries, who stared in a one-off drive for Williams at Monza last year where he claimed ninth position on an impressive first outing, has endured a difficult first season of full time racing in F1 and is still yet to score any points.

    This has unfortunately led to him being replaced after 10 Grand Prix, with eight time race winner Daniel Ricciardo who lost his seat with McLaren at the end of 2022 season following two trouble seasons with the team stepping in.

    He is set to re-join the Faenza squad with whom he spent two seasons with in 2012 and 2013 in their Toro Rosso guise before his promotion to Red Bull in 2014.

    Ricciardo went one to net seven victories for Red Bull, before joining Renault for two seasons from 2019, then moving onto McLaren for 2021.

    My Opinion-

    Honestly, it’s great to see Daniel back in F1 but I have a feeling this is a test for him. Obviously he done the tyre test at Silverstone today and apparently the time was quick enough to be on the front row last Sunday… But this test I’m talking about, is if he performs well enough the last 12 races, could he possibly replace Sergio Perez at Red Bull next season?

    There’s also a part of me which is gutted for Nyck, no-one deserves to be treated this way whether you’ve been in F1 for months or years. I get he hasn’t scored any points this season, but we are only 10 races in, whereas other rookies for Alpha Tauri / Red Bull outfit have been given more than a season to prove themselves.

    I’m very pleased to welcome Daniel back into the team. There’s no doubt about his driving skills, and he already knows many of us, so his integration will be easy and straight forward. The team will also profit a lot from his experience, as he is an eight-time Formula 1 Grand Prix winner.

    Franz Tost on Daniel Returning.

  • De Vries to AT

    Alpha Tauri have announced that Nyck de Vries will be joining the team from 2023, following the news that Pierre Gasly will be moving to Alpine to partner Esteban Ocon next season.

    De Vries has been enjoying his FP1 outings for Mercedes, Aston Martin and Williams in 2022, giving him plenty of mileage in the new generation of Formula 1 machinery.

    The Dutchman then stepped in for Alex Albon when he was ruled out of the Italian Grand Prix. De Vries impressed the paddock with a mature drive to P9 on his maiden outing. With Alpha Tauri didn’t waste anytime in obtaining the signature of the 2019 Formula 2 champion once it became clear that Gasly was moving to a different team.

    I’m extremely excited to be joining Scuderia AlphaTauri for 2023 and I want to thank both Red Bull and the team for giving me the opportunity to drive in F1. After Formula 2, I took a slightly different path with motorsport, but F1 has always been my dream and I’m grateful to be able to fulfil it. I’ve had a lot of chances to experience the 2022 car this year and I think that has put me in a great position for the upcoming season, I hope this has helped to prepare me for what is to come. Having spent most of my teenage years in Italy for karting, I’ve always felt at home there, so for me it’s great to be joining an Italian team, that already has a real family feel, and I’m looking forward to meeting everyone and to start to build our relationship before the next season.

    Nyck de Vries on stepping up to a full-time F1 race seat.

    Scuderia AlphaTauri had a very successful time with Pierre. We will never forget his fantastic victory in Monza and his podium finishes in Brazil and Azerbaijan. I want to thank Pierre for all the effort he’s put into the team in the last years, and I wish him all the best for his future. Now, we are pleased to start a new chapter with Nyck, who’s very much welcome at Scuderia AlphaTauri. He is a very high skilled driver, as he won in all the categories he competed in, with many races and championships under his belt. His last big success was winning the Formula E World Championship, and this is clear evidence that he is a very competitive driver, who deserves a seat in F1. I am looking forward to seeing him in our car and I’m confident that with Yuki and Nyck we will have a very strong driver line up for 2023.

    Franz Tost, Alpha Tauri Team Principal.

  • De Vries possible move to AT

    Despite Colton Herta’s potential move to Alpha Tauri breaking down, Pierre Gasly could still be off to Alpine. It is now being reported that Nyck de Vries is waiting in the wings to replace the Fre- nchman at Alpha Tauri.

    Red Bull have appeared to accepted IndyCar driver Herta will not be granted an FIA Super Licence to make the switch to Formula 1, so the deal appears to be off the cards.

    It had originally been claimed that Herta’s availability for Alpha Tauri was a condition upon which Gasly would be released from the final year of his contract in order to join Alpine following Alonso’s departure to Aston Martin for 2023.

    However, it looks like RB still may let Gasly go, with De Vries said to now be first in line to replace hima t the sister team.

    De Vries has long been linked with an F1 race seat but in recent times more so at Williams – with whom he made his debut at the 2022 Italian Grand Prix when deputising for the unwell Alex Albon and impressed greatly by finishing P9.

    It appears that the performance caught the eye of Red Bull adviser, Helmut Marko who has since met up with the 27 year old in Graz, Austria.

    Nyck de Vries and George Russell ahead of the F1 Grand Prix of Italy at the Circuit de Monza in Monza, Italy. REMKO DE WAAL
    Nyck de Vries at the Italian GP

  • Albon out of Italian GP, De Vries in

    Williams driver, Alex Albon will be missing the rest of this weekend’s Italian Grand Prix after being diagnosed with appendicitis, with former Formula 2 and Formula E champion Nyck de Vries standing in for him.

    In the free practice sessions yesterday, Albon finished a promising 10th in FP2 and 11th in FP1 as Williams’ straight-line speed appeared to put them in the fight for points in Monza.

    However, ahead of the final practice session today, Williams announced the Thai driver will not be taking part in the remainder of the weekend.

    De Vries ran for Williams in FP1 at the Spanish Grand Prix and was at the track in Italy this weekend to perform similar duties for Aston Martin. As a result, the 27 year old will be making his Grand Prix debut this weekend racing alongside Nicholas Latifi.

    Williams Racing can confirm that, after feeling unwell this morning and seeking medical advice from the FIA and local hospital, Alex Albon is now undergoing treatment for appendicitis. Following on from this, we can confirm that the team’s Reserve Driver Nyck de Vries will drive in place of Alex for the remainder of the Italian Grand Prix weekend. Alex is in good spirits and the team wishes him a speedy recovery.

    A statement from the team.

  • De Vries, FP1 run with AM

    Nyck de Vries will be taking part in FP1 for the third time this season with a third different team, he will be taking Sebastian Vettel’s Aston Martin in the first practice session for the 2022 Italian Grand Prix.

    The 27 year old, ran in FP1 for Williams in place of Alex Albon at the Spanish Grand Prix, as well as subbing in for Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton in France.

    As per the 2022 regulations, each team needs to allocate two practice sessions to field a driver that has not competed in two Grand Prix. Aston Martin are yet to announce who will be taking part in the remaining practice session.

    I am really looking forward to driving for AMF1, particularly at such a legendary circuit as Monza. It will be my third FP1 session of the season, and in the third different Formula 1 chassis, and these opportunities have given me a fantastic insight into how Formula 1 cars and teams function and operate. I hope I can bring a fresh perspective to the AMF1 team and can undertake a run-programme that proves beneficial to us both.

    Nyck de Vries on his FP1 session.

    We are delighted to welcome Nyck to our team, and we look forward to working with him at Monza. I have watched Nyck’s career with great interest – he drove brilliantly to win the Formula 2 title in 2019 and underlined his class by winning the Formula E World Championship in 2020/2021, so we are looking forward to gaining his perspectives and insights about our car. His achievements show that he clearly deserves a shot at Formula 1 – and, hopefully, this opportunity to get behind the wheel of the AMR22 will allow him to showcase his abilities to the wider world.

    Team Principal, Mike Krack.

  • De Vries gets FP1 run

    Mercedes have announced that their reserve driver, Nyck de Vries will be behind the wheel of the W13 during the first practice session of this weekend’s French Grand Prix in place of Lewis Hamilton.

    The FP1 run for the 27 year old, is a part of the 2022 sporting regulations, that teams are obliged to run rookie drivers in two FP1 sessions across the season. Red Bull and Williams have already completed one session so far.

    This will be the Dutchmans second FP1 outing of the season, he took the wheel of the Williams FW44 in place of Alex Albon at the Spanish Grand Prix earlier this season.

    This isn’t the first time De Vries will be in a Mercedes car, he jumped in the Merc at last year’s post-season Abu Dhabi Grand Prix test as well as 2020. He is currently the reigning Formula E Champion, taking the title for Mercedes last year alongside fellow Mercedes reserve, Stoffel Vandoorne. Again, De Vries is driving in Formula E sitting eighth in the standings with four races left.

    Nyck is replacing Lewis in first practice this weekend, as part of the allocated sessions for young drivers this year. So, we’re looking forward to seeing how he gets on. Our understanding of the W13 is growing with every lap and it’s encouraging to see that reflected in our development and results. While we were quicker in Austria, we still weren’t quick enough to challenge at the front. We need to keep chasing those final few tenths and bringing new developments to the cars, including this weekend in France. Paul Ricard is a very different track and challenge. It has smooth tarmac and a wide range of corner types, along with long straights. The aim will be to make further inroads on the gap to the front and hopefully be back on the podium.

    Toto Wolff, Mercedes Team Principle.

  • De Vries gets FP1 run with Williams

    Mercedes reserve driver, Nyck de Vries will be making his Formula 1 race weekend debut, this weekend in Spain as he carries out driving duties for Williams in the first practice session.

    The reigning Formula E World Champion, will be borrowing Alex Albon’s FW44 for the 60 minute session at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya.

    De Vries, shares the Mercedes reserve role with Stoffel Vandoorne, who is also his teammate in Formula E for Mercedes EQ. The Dutchman previously tested F1 machinery when he drove the Silver Arrows in last year’s post-season Abu Dhabi Grand Prix test.

    His appearance for Williams fulfils one of the British team’s two mandated young driver sessions, which is a new rule introduced for this season.

    We are looking forward to having Nyck de Vries in the car for FP1 as it is always good to work with a new driver and get a fresh opinion on the car’s strengths and weaknesses. Nyck’s experience and professionalism will be crucial on Friday as he will complete some of the key engineering tests in FP1 before he hands the car back to Alex for FP2.

    Dave Robson, Head of Vehicle Performance at Williams.

    Firstly, I’d really like to thank Williams for the opportunity to run in FP1. It’s great for me to get to know the team and drive the FW44, and also to get myself out on track during a Formula 1 weekend. Preparation for the test is going well so far and the team have been incredibly supportive of me. I’m very much looking forward to the whole experience in Spain now.

    Nyck de Vries, on the FP1 session for Williams.

    My Opinion-

    Well, one of the teams had to take the bullet and go first… All jokes aside, I’m glad that Nyck is getting a chance, he definitely deserves a seat in F1 and maybe this is his chance to get out there and impress Williams or maybe some other teams?

    Nyck has been rumoured to the Williams seat, not just last year but also this year, all eyes onto Friday now to see how he does!

  • Round 8- Berlin E-Prix

    Round 8- Berlin E-Prix

    FP1-

    Round 7 winner, Edoardo Mortara set the benchmark once again in FP1 as he set a 1m 06.373s at the reverse, clockwise layout of the Tempelhof Airport Circuit. Overnight work was carried out to switch from the traditional track to the anti-clockwise version, giving drivers a whole new circuit to get used to.

    Mortara adapted the quickest, with Porsche’s Andre Lotterer was up there once again on home soil. Avalanche Andretti’s Jake Dennis came home third. Pascal Wehrlein and front row qualifier, Alexander Sims rounded out the top five.

    The full top 10 are: P1: Mortara, P2: Lotterer, P3: Dennis, P4: Wehrlein, P5: Sims, P6: Vergne, P7: De Vries, P8: Di Grassi, P9: Da Costa and P10: Bird.

    FP2-

    ROKiT Venturi’s pace was still unbeatable in Free Practice 2, as Lucas di Grassi and Edoardo Mortara led the way with the first and second quickest times of the day.

    Di Grassi’s 1m 06.133s was two tenths quicker than his teammate managed in FP1 and 0.150s quicker than Mortara in FP2. The pair then lead Oliver Rowland, who went quickest in the first session ahead of Round 7.

    The full top 10 are: P1: Di Grassi, P2: Mortara, P3: Rowland, P4: Vandoorne, P5: Wehrlein, P6: Dennis, P7: Vergne, P8: Frijns, P9: Turvey and P10: Da Costa.

    Qualifying-

    ROKiT Venturi Racing’s Edoardo Mortara, held his own in qualifying as he grasped a second consecutive Julius Baer Pole Position in two days, he only had to wait 5 years and two came along at once!!…

    The shock of qualifying for Round 8 was seeing the top 3 in the championship not start higher than 7th… Vandoorne who came into the weekend leading the championship only managed P8, Vergne who is in 2nd in the Championship was behind the leader and the same for Mitch Evans also, who had been on a role until now.

    The full top 10 are: P1: Mortara, P2: Frijns, P3: De Vries, P4: Lotterer, P5: Da Costa, P6: Cassidy, P7: Di Grassi, P8: Vandoorne, P9: Vergne and P10: Evans.

    Round 8-

    Mercedes EQ driver and reigning champion Nyck de Vries, powered to a comfortable, managed drive to the race win, where he won the Season 7 title triumph. Mortara following 2.5s back, with Vandoorne making it two Mercedes EQ cars on the podiums and three Mercedes EQ powertrains in the top three. The Belgians third place finish also extended his silverware streak to three races.

    Lucas di Grassi came home fourth to extend that to four Mercedes powered cars in the top four in a dominant outing. Oliver Rowland made good progress from 10th to an eventual seventh. A bit of a weird weekend for DS Techeetah as Jean-Eric Vergne finished 9th…

    We’ve had a bit of a difficult ride the past three races. So, honestly I’m just very pleased to be here and to be back. Obviously it’s a bit of an emotional one for me. It was the perfect way to come back after a difficult day yesterday and the work put in with my engineers to find positives. Edo (Mortara) has been very strong all weekend so we definitely had to keep it clean, but the team managed very well on their side and I executed it, so I’m very pleased.

    Nyck de Vries on winning Round 8.

    The full top 10 are: P1: De Vries, P2: Mortara, P3: Vandoorne, P4: Di Grassi, P5: Frijns, P6: Da Costa, P7: Rowland, P8: Lotterer, P9: Vergne and P10: Evans.

    We now have just under 3 weeks until we are back for Round 9, for the Jakarta E-Prix on the 4th June!

  • Round 1- Diriyah E-Prix

    And finally we have Formula E cars back on track! We had Free Practice 1 to start things off and for some it was good where as for others not so…

    In the first five minutes reigning champion Nyck de Vries struck the wall into Turn 3 with the rear of his Silver Arrow getting sideways and damage enough to force the Dutchman into retiring the car from the session which turned the whole course yellow.

    The track condition at Riyadh Street Circuit is always tough to manage during the opening session, the track evolves and gets faster as it cleans up. As conditions started to come to the drivers, Nissan e.dams new boy Maximillian Guenther set the target for the rest to chase mid-way through FP1. But it was Mahindra Racing’s new signing Oliver Rowland who hit the top of the timesheets at the end, with a 1m 10.559s, with Antonio Felix da Costa in 2nd and Jake Dennis in third.

    Going on to the second free practice session, it was Oliver Rowland again who took the top spot with Sam Bird whose won twice in Saudi Arabia was in 2nd by just 0.015. Third was Jake Dennis again making it an all British top 3.

    Rowland’s time was just over a second quicker than the times on Thursday due to the track. However it was the reigning champs who were down the order, with Stoffel Vandoorne 16th and Nyck a couple of spots back.

    Now onto qualifying- the new format for all the drivers but it was infact Mercedes’ Stoffel Vandoorne who took pole position. The final duel was between Stoffel and Jake (Dennis), Dennis originally flew off the line but his Andretti looked a lot looser than the Mercedes, and by the half-way point of the lap the Belgian had romped four tenths of a second clear.

    The top for qualifying are: P1: Vandoorne, P2: Dennis, P3: De Vries, P4: Lotterer, P5: Bird, P6: Cassidy, P7:Frijns, P8: Oliver Rowland, P9: Di Grassi, P10: Gunther.

    Now onto the race! It was the reigning champion taking the first race win of the season just like last year! And his team-mate bringing it home in second making the Mercedes EQ team have a 1-2!! What a way to start the season. The last podium spot going to Jake Dennis.

    The last couple of laps saw 4 drivers all battling for fourth position which involved Sam Bird, Lucas Di Grassi, Edoardo Mortara and Nick Cassidy. With Sam Bird making that fourth position.