Immediately after confirming Pierre Gasly’s departure from the team, Alpha Tauri announces Nyck De Vries as his replacement. The former Formula 2 and Formula E champion will join the sister Red Bull team for the 2023 F1 season.
De Vries had a memorable F1 debut when he substituted for an ill Alex Albon in the Italian GP this year. The Dutch rookie impressed everyone by finishing the race at P9, something his teammate for the race Nicholas Latifi, couldn’t manage to do all season. His stock skyrocketed after his promising F1 debut, and he looked poised to replace Latifi at Williams. Latifi would leave the Williams F1 team after the final race of the 2022 season. It was speculated that De Vries would be the obvious choice of Williams to replace Latifi. However, he was poached by Alpha Tauri after it was revealed that De Vries had met Dr. Helmut Marko (Advisor to the Red Bull F1 team) and was discussing joining the Italian outfit for next season.
Nyck De Vries after securing his first full-season drive in Formula One
“I’m extremely excited to be joining Scuderia AlphaTauri for 2023,” De Vries said. “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.”
Alpha Tauri’s team boss Franz Tost welcomed the new signing after Gasly’s departure. “Now, we are pleased to start a new chapter with Nyck, who’s very much welcome at Scuderia AlphaTauri,” Tost said.
“He is a highly 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, which clearly shows that he is a very competitive driver who deserves a seat in F1.”
With the confirmation of Gasly’s and De Vries’ future teams, only two slots are left on the grid for 2023. Haas and Williams have yet to confirm their final driver lineup for the 2023 season. Williams would have to look for a rookie driver now that their number one option has signed for Alpha Tauri. Haas, on the other hand, has been rumored to be looking for an experienced alternative to Mick Schumacher.
