Mar.8 (GMM) Nyck de Vries has upgraded his relationship with McLaren from simulator and testing work to full reserve driver status, filling the trackside role at this weekend’s Australian Grand Prix.
The Dutchman, who spent ten races as a full-time F1 driver with Alpha Tauri in 2023, is juggling the McLaren commitment alongside his regular drives in Formula E with Mahindra and the World Endurance Championship with Toyota.
He was clear the arrangement would not cover every round. “I won’t be there for every Grand Prix,” he said in the Melbourne paddock.
“Ultimately, I’m mainly here as a backup. If anything happens to one of the drivers, I’m available. In practice, I kind of mirror everything the drivers do. I’m involved in everything, have access to all the information, and also try to do my own analyses to draw trends and conclusions.”
De Vries was part of McLaren’s junior program as a teenager before the partnership ended eight years ago, and several members of the engineering team he now works with in the simulator are familiar faces from that era.
“It’s impressive how the team has fought back in recent years to a level where they’ve been able to win races and championships again,” he said. “What’s great is that the core of the engineering group is essentially still the same.”
He acknowledged the sport has changed significantly since his Alpha Tauri stint three years ago. “It’s definitely different. Especially with the new regulations. That changes everything quite a bit, although many basic principles are still the same.”