Stoffel Vandoorne: dramatic debut to tough exit

F1: Beyond The Grid

karenellenbevan

Leisure, Sports, Technology, Automotive

4.8 • 5.2K Ratings

🗓️ 23 April 2024

⏱️ 52 minutes

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Summary

A multiple title winner at junior level and a point-scorer on his unexpected F1 debut in 2016, Stoffel Vandoorne seemed on track for a long and prosperous career in Formula 1.

But his big break at McLaren in 2017 arrived during one of the team’s most challenging periods.

They finished second-last in the standings during Vandoorne’s first season, endured a difficult transition from Honda to Renault engines the following year, and there was huge organisational change at the top as Zak Brown came in as CEO.

After just seven points-finishes in two years, with a best result of P7, Stoffel was replaced by Lando Norris for 2019 and he hasn’t raced in F1 since.

Now a Test and Reserve driver for Aston Martin, the Belgian tells Tom Clarkson how he prepared for his first race in F1 at such short notice, the drama of signing his first McLaren contract, where it all went wrong during his two seasons on the grid, and what impact those struggles had on his mental wellbeing, motivation and enjoyment of racing.

This episode is sponsored by:

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Transcript

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0:00.0	Every Formula One driver is racing for their future.
0:09.0	At the end of the 2024 season, with so much competition for seats some supremely talented drivers will drop out of the sport.
0:18.0	It's happened many times before just ask Stofle Van Dawn.
0:22.0	I wasn't myself, I wasn't feeling loved within the team.
0:25.9	I struggled to motivate myself to even go to the race, let's say.
0:29.2	Your whole life, your whole career, you're working towards that one goal of getting to Formula One and then suddenly you're in Formula One and it's not going the way that you've kind of imagined it going that's quite tough to take at
0:44.6	maklaren stofel was in the right team at the wrong time
0:49.2	2017 and 18 was one of their worst periods he He was replaced by Lando Norris in 2019, leaving him with no seat and one regret.
0:59.0	I wish I enjoyed my time a little bit more is because your brain is so taken over by the whole
1:05.9	Formula One world the engineering side of things the media everything that comes
1:10.0	with it that you actually can't properly enjoy almost.
1:13.0	Welcome to F1 Beyond the Grid with me Tom Clarkson.
1:22.0	Stofle Van Dawn didn't race a single-seater until he was 18.
1:26.0	But that late start didn't stop him winning two Formula Renault titles in his first three years
1:32.0	or the GP2 championship in 2015. But the champion of what's now called Formula 2 didn't graduate to an F1 race seat immediately.
1:41.0	He signed with McLaren as their test and reserve driver. Then, when Fernando
1:46.0	Alonso was ruled out of a race early in 2016, Stoppel was dramatically thrown in for his
1:52.2	Formula One debut.
1:53.7	He outqualified teammate Jensen Button and finished in the points,
1:57.8	leading to then McLaren boss Ron Dennis, signing him up for the following year. But this was a turbulent time at McLaren.
2:05.0	In his first season the team finished second last in the constructors standings for the second time in three years.
2:11.0	There was change of plenty with Zach Brown coming in as CEO amid a huge
	...

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