French driver Pierre Gasly will make his Formula One debut at the Malaysian Grand Prix this weekend after being drafted in by the Toro Rosso team in place of under-performing Russian Daniil Kvyat.
The Red Bull-owned team said the switch, for an unspecified number of races, “gives us an opportunity to make a more informed decision regarding our 2018 driver choices”.
“This is not a case of goodbye for our Daniil, as he still remains part of the Red Bull Family,” the team added in a statement, although the future does not look bright for the Russian.
Gasly, the 2016 GP2 champion who is currently racing in Japan’s Super Formula series, is the leading contender to replace Carlos Sainz when the Spaniard leaves Toro Rosso on loan to Renault next season.
Kvyat could be retained but has scored only four points in 14 races compared to Sainz’s 48, with the team locked in a tight midfield battle.
They are sixth overall, seven points behind Williams and 10 ahead of Renault.
Renault had hoped to secure Sainz before the end of the season but Tuesday’s move indicates the departing Jolyon Palmer will now see out 2017 in that seat.
Toro Rosso, who are switching from Renault to Honda engines next year, can ill-afford to lose Sainz with six races remaining.
Gasly is already under contract to Red Bull who use Toro Rosso as a feeder outfit for their main factory team. Japan follows immediately after Malaysia and is familiar territory for the 21-year-old.
He may miss the US Grand Prix on Oct. 22, however, since that clashes with the final round of the Super Formula championship at Suzuka.
“He (Gasly) is the next in line at Red Bull for this opportunity and he has shown that he deserves it,” team boss Franz Tost said.
Kvyat has already been through the process, moving up to Red Bull Racing in 2015 and suffering a demotion last year when he swapped places with Dutch teenager Max Verstappen.
“For a variety of reasons, some of them due to technical problems, but others being mistakes of his own making, Daniil Kvyat has not really shown his true potential so far this year,” Tost said.
“This will give us the opportunity to evaluate Pierre on track during a proper race weekend.”
Gasly’s arrival means France will have three drivers in Sunday’s race at Sepang, the newcomer joining compatriots Romain Grosjean (Haas) and Esteban Ocon (Force India).
Formula 1 losing its toughest race: Hamilton
Formula One is losing one of its toughest races with the departure of Malaysia from the calendar after this weekend’s grand prix, triple world champion Lewis Hamilton said yesterday.
The current contract at the Sepang circuit had been due to expire after next year’s race but the Malaysian government and Formula One said in April this year’s would be the last.
Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak said then that declining ticket sales, viewership and tourism were behind the decision. The circuit has been on the calendar since 1999 and produced memorable races including Hamilton’s win in 2014.
“It is definitely sad to think this is the last race,” the Briton told a news conference organised by his Mercedes team’s Malaysian oil sponsor Petronas.
“It’s the most challenging for the car and the team, so they are taking away one of the toughest, if not the toughest, Grand Prix of the season, which will be hard to replace.”
Some drivers liken the race to sitting in a sauna while wearing overalls. Cockpit temperatures approach 50 degrees Celsius and ambient humidity levels of around 70 percent.
A driver loses around three litres of body fluid in sweat during the 90 minutes of an average Malaysian Grand Prix, according to Mercedes’ data.
Hamilton had a nightmare at Sepang last year when he suffered an engine failure while leading the race from pole position.
The 25 points that slipped through his fingers ultimately proved crucial at the end of the season, when he lost the championship to team mate Nico Rosberg by five points.
