Vandoorne lands Mercedes role for 2019

From McLaren reject to Mercedes,Stoffel Vandoornehas landed the role of Mercedes’ simulator driver for 2019, a job he’ll do alongside his Formula E commitments.

Vandoorne is set to leave the Formula 1 grid at the end ofthis weekend’s Abu Dhabi Grand Prixafter McLaren decided not to renew his contract.

The Belgian racer will instead compete in Formula E, racing for HWA.

He will, however, maintain some F1 ties as he will also beMercedes’2019年仿真器驱动程序。

“I’ll be doing the simulator work in the F1 team for them, with Mercedes,” he explained

“That’s an exciting part for me as well, to still be involved in the F1 world, to be with the world champions as well.

“It will be a very interesting move.

“I’m sure I can bring them a lot of fresh ideas, but also for me to see the differences there are, because I’ve only been at work with McLaren in F1.

“It’s exciting for me as well to kind of have a bit of a fresh environment.”

He hopes that by staying in F1, even on the sidelines, he could maybe one day return to the grid.

“It’s definitely good to keep involved in the [F1] world, because we never know what happens in the future,” he added.

“To be involved with Mercedes and to perform the work for them is good, they will know exactly what I’m capable of doing.

“We don’t know what the driver market is going to do in the future.

“It was a bit crazy this season, and who knows what it will be in the future? It’s hard to tell.

“It’s good to be involved and be prepared for anything that comes up.”

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