How F1's new determined Dutchman got his long-awaited break
Nyck de Vries had almost given up on his dream of racing in Formula 1 when he got the call-up to stand in for Alex Albon at this year’s Italian Grand Prix, as he explains to OLEG KARPOV. But how pivotal was that in getting him a full-time ride with AlphaTauri next season?
On Christmas Day 2020, a special gift from his son awaited Hendrik de Vries, a Renault dealership owner and an amateur racing driver from the Netherlands. Nyck, who shares his father’s passion for racing, had realised one of his lifelong dreams just a couple of weeks before the holidays, by taking part in official Formula 1 testing for young drivers – and in title-winning machinery, too. De Vries made sure his dad would have something to remember a day that was so special for both of them.
“After my first season in Formula E I got given the rookie test with Mercedes for the first time, and I was super-excited and happy… because I thought I was never going to drive a Formula 1 car,” recalls the man who will be one of the 20 full-time drivers on the grid of the world’s main racing championship next year.
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