De Vries impresses: 'This is what a world-class driver looks like'
General
- Ludo van Denderen
Nyck de Vries' career could easily have looked very different if he had been trusted by (then) AlphaTauri for longer last season. But instead of being active in Formula 1, the Dutchman currently competes in the World Endurance Championship, Formula E and - temporarily - Super Formula. In that Japanese championship, De Vries appears to have impressed.
Eighteenth in qualifying, and a 13th place in the first race in Super Formula. At first glance, that does not seem like an exceptional debut for De Vries, who is almost exclusively competing against Japanese drivers in Super Formula. However, it should be mentioned that De Vries really had zero preparation for the first race, over a week ago: Not a moment in the sim, let alone a test.
The astonishing professionalism of De Vries
Only during free practice at the Motegi circuit did De Vries see Team Impul's car for the first time. What followed was a quick learning process and has not gone unnoticed by the race stable's team boss how quickly De Vries managed to adapt. At Autosport.com, Kazuki Hoshino was extremely complimentary about the Dutchman's performance. "I am amazed," Hoshino said.
"Young drivers should learn from what he has done. Before coming to Japan, he made a list of what he can prepare in advance, and he suggested an online meeting with me and the engineers to learn more about the car, the circuit, and the tyres. I realised that even those that have made it to the top don’t neglect these preparations."
De Vries' professionalism, in particular, surprised the Japanese racing team. The driver kept asking questions continuously, to make sure he had understood everything correctly. It made Hoshino think, "‘This is what a top-class driver looks like."
This article was written in collaboration with Olly Darcy
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