In the round-up: Formula E race winner and GP3 (now Formula 3) champion Mitch Evans says getting a place on the Formula 1 grid is down to chance as much as ability.
In brief
“Crazy opportunity” is only way into F1 – Evans
Evans said he’d proven himself quicker than some F1 race drivers in simulator tests “but it brings nothing” in terms of career advancement. “You just need a freak situation to happen,” he told Total Motorsport. “Even trying to get reserve seats, there are guys paying to be reserve drivers. It’s ridiculous.”
He believes some in F1 were too quick to heap praise on Nyck de Vries, his Formula E rival, and Oliver Bearman following their first appearances in F1.
“When you are really in the fickle of it and know how it works, the sport is demented,” he said. “Look at Nyck de Vries. He was not going to [get a] chance at all for an F1 seat, then he got a free chance when Alex Albon got sick, did a good job and all of a sudden he’s the best thing since sliced bread. He’s the same driver he’s been for all the other years.
“Look at Oliver Bearman [in the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix]. These are good guys but the week before he qualified 18th in Bahrain, then he gets a chance at Ferrari.
“He did a decent job but was in one of the best cars and he will probably get a chance out of it. It’s all about perception but teams don’t want to take risks on drivers any more. The only way you can get there is by getting a crazy opportunity in a race seat.”
Malukas heading to Foyt
David Malukas has landed a full-time IndyCar drive for 2025 after a pre-season wrist injury prevented him from taking up his intended place at McLaren this year. The 22-year-old will join perennial backmarkers Foyt, whose form has improved this year since they formed a technical alliance with Penske, which has seen their driver Santino Ferrucci rise to 10th in the championship standings.
“For me, the 2024 season was very chaotic and did not go to plan so I am looking forward to a new beginning,” said Malukas, who returned to the series in June as a replacement for Tom Blomqvist at Laguna Seca.
“I am mostly looking forward to being a part of such a special team,” said Malukas. The recent alliance with Team Penske this season has clearly been beneficial, and I want to be sure that we build the right environment, not just for myself, but for the mechanics, engineers and everyone else who makes this all possible.”
Canapino back to tin-tops
Agustin Canapino will return to Argentina’s Turismo Carretera (touring car) series this weekend after quitting IndyCar halfway through his second year in the series. He sat out one round in Road America earlier this year in the wake of an online war of words between his supporters and McLaren driver Theo Pourchaire following the pair’s collision in Detroit.
Juncos Hollinger is yet to announce a replacement for Canapino, whose car was driven by Nolan Siegel in Road America, before he joined McLaren as Pourchaire’s replacement.
Mueller joins Andretti
Nico Mueller will join Andretti’s Formula E team following Norman Nato’s departure. The former Abt driver will partner 2023 champion Jake Dennis.
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Links
Lapierre: Alpine must aspire to fight top teams in 2025 (Sportscar 365)
‘I think next year the car can be strong everywhere. The big step we need is the reliability, and making sure we can drive without problems.’
Good vibes, coffee, rest and relaxation: Beganovic on his hometown (Formula 3)
‘We have a karting track in the city, which is like 10 minutes from my house, so it’s not that far. We used to go on a Wednesday and a Friday, and it was a free practice, from 5 to 8. It wasn’t a big track, but it has everything, and I learned quite a lot from it. It’s not just tight corners, it has chicanes, high-speed sections and tricky slow corners. So it was a good place to learn, especially being so close to my house, it was very useful to have.’
F1 Manager 2024 update for 13 August 2024 (Steam DB)
‘Update 1.5 is out now. Please update your game for these changes to reflect.’
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