Relief for under-fire De Vries as he secures backing from PIVOTAL figure

Dan McCarthy
Friday 5 May 2023 16:43

AlphaTauri team principal Franz Tost has issued his support to struggling Nyck de Vries, saying the Dutchman is going through a "learning process" like all other rookies.

The Dutchman was snapped up to replace the outgoing Pierre Gasly in the winter and has endured a far from ideal to life in F1.

He is one of just two drivers, along with Williams rookie Logan Sargeant, yet to score a point this season and two crashes at Baku last weekend have ramped up the pressure further.

There has already been speculation that De Vries is in line to be replaced if his performances do not improve but Tost's latest comments appear to rebuff those rumours.

"There's, as I always say, a learning process and a crash period," Tost said.

De Vries invites Vettel comparison

Last year saw De Vries make his debut in F1, driving in the Italian Grand Prix for Williams to replace Alex Albon, who was forced to withdraw due to appendicitis.

He performed admirably, finishing ninth and that performance alone was enough to put him in contention for a race seat in 2023.

AlphaTauri turned to the 28-year-old but the former Formula E champion has had a poor start to the season.

Two 14th-place finishes in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia represent his best results so far this year and two more crashes in Baku have not helped his cause.

Despite those woes, Tost thinks De Vries still has a big future and has likened his start to another former Faenza prodigy in Sebastian Vettel.

"If the drivers don't crash, they don't know the limit," he added. "This is a credit you must give them, otherwise it doesn't work.

"And there was no driver not crashing. I remember that Sebastian in the first races came back the first lap most often without the nose. That's part of the game.

"As I always say, if a rookie is coming to Formula 1, he needs minimum three years to understand what's going on here."

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