De Vries is not yet fully aware: 'Was quite nervous'

Nyck de Vries is going through a lot during the Formula One weekend at Monza, where he was initially only due to race for Aston Martin during the first free practice session. However, the Dutchman was unexpectedly allowed to make his Grand Prix debut as a replacement for Alexander Albon, who is suffering from appendicitis.

De Vries makes GP debut from P8

De Vries was suddenly called up by Mercedes, after which he was sent to Williams. There it was still uncertain if he would drive the race, but he had to prepare for FP3. Just before that session the driver from the Netherlands was told that he can replace Albon for the rest of the weekend. At Viaplay he told what went through him when he heard the news.

"I haven't really been able to put it into perspective yet," says De Vries, who has yet to fully grasp the concept. "I must admit that I was quite nervous, actually from the moment I heard the news. I haven't been able to eat either, I literally went into the engineering truck and haven't been out since."

With the result of qualifying, the Dutchman is not entirely satisfied. "I think I, and we collectively, left something out and I think there was a bit more potential. Nevertheless, we shouldn't be too hard on ourselves and it was a good result," said De Vries, who will start the Italian Grand Prix from eighth on the grid.