AlphaTauri’s signing of Season Seven Formula E World Champion and Mercedes reserve driver Nyck de Vries has been hailed as a “masterstroke” by Dutch driver Tom Coronel, who thinks the Red Bull family have one of the “biggest” names in the paddock for next season.
It was announced prior to FP3 at the Japanese Grand Prix that De Vries would be partnering Yuki Tsunoda at the Faenza-based team in 2023, which will see the Dutchman leave his role as Mercedes’ reserve driver.
The 27-year-old is actually one of the most decorated in single-seater racing, after claiming the 2019 Formula 2 World Championship and becoming the first official Formula E World Champion in 2021; however, it’s his performance at the Italian Grand Prix which is believed to have been the decisive moment.
De Vries was called up to replace Alex Albon for the Italian GP prior to FP3, after the Thai driver was diagnosed with appendicitis.
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The Dutchman’s debut was flawless, as he not only made it to Q2; he also matched the Williams’ best result of the year after finishing ninth in the race.
His name quickly flew up AlphaTauri’s list, after it became impossible to sign IndyCar’s Colton Herta.
Apart from his F1 debut, De Vries’ season has been somewhat of a shocker, as he made a mess of trying to defend his Formula E crown.
There is no doubt that he is exceptionally talented, though, and perhaps the more traditional format and circuits will suit the Uitwellingerga-born driver.
Coronel thinks Red Bull advisor Dr Helmut Marko is “brilliant” at “spotting young drivers”, especially with other teams having attempted to sign the Dutchman.
“I think this is a masterstroke from Red Bull,” Coronel told the Dutch edition of Motorsport.com.
“You should think twice. You are now Doctor Helmut Marko and think ‘oh, Williams would like to have him’ and ‘oh, he is going to test at Alpine.’
“Furthermore, with all those customer teams, Mercedes also knows what he can do, so boom, I need to capture this guy right now.
“Then I’ll be ahead of everyone and I can choose from all the candidates on the market. And Marko doesn’t just do anything eh, he is brilliant at one thing and that is spotting young drivers.
“They have a kind of brutality in that area. It’s a matter of ‘we want that guy, bam, here you have a contract right away and we’ll sort it out’. They actually think very simply and act quickly.”
It’s quite rare nowadays for a driver to be a rookie in F1 in the latter stage of their 20s, with most rookies in F1 these days being around 20 years of age.
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Given his age and success in various championships, Marko has tipped De Vries to instantly lead the Red Bull sister side next season, taking up the team leader role from Alpine-bound Pierre Gasly.
Coronel thinks De Vries is “bigger” than the majority of the F1 paddock and, something which is difficult to argue with based on titles alone.
“We should not forget: in karting, he won a championship every year. If you look at his CV, so purely titles, he is actually bigger than most in this paddock. There are few who have such a list as Nyck,” he added, indicating he could even get promoted to Red Bull fairly quickly.