Stoffel Vandoorne said farewell to Formula One at Sunday’s season-ending Abu Dhabi Grand Prix but McLaren boss Zak Brown would not be surprised to see the Belgian back on a future starting grid.
The 26-year-old, who dominated the 2015 GP2 championship but struggled in Formula One with an uncompetitive car, will debut in the all-electric Formula E series next month with the Mercedes-affiliated HWA Racelab team. In two seasons with McLaren, Vandoorne managed a best result of seventh and was out-qualified by double world champion team mate Fernando Alonso in all 21 races this season.
« I think Stoffel’s a great talent, » Brown told Reuters. « I think he did have a fair crack at it in a very poor race car but we gave him two solid years and we gave Fernando and himself equal equipment.
« He did have a pretty difficult team mate but sometimes things don’t click and I think he’ll go on to be successful in Formula E. I think we could see him back in Formula One, » added the American.
« I wouldn’t be surprised, it wouldn’t be the first time a driver struggled a little bit at first and then gelled a little bit later on. I think Stoffel is definitely a Formula One calibre driver, so you can see him back for sure. »
Vandoorne told reporters in Abu Dhabi it was hard to see how things might pan out but he was not ruling out a comeback either. While his main focus would now be Formula E, he would be keeping the lines of communication open.
« I’m tying up with Mercedes, I’m going to be their simulator driver which will be a new experience for me as well so I will keep in contact with Formula One and I will still be involved in this world, » he said.
McLaren will have an all-new line-up in 2019, with Spaniard Carlos Sainz joining from Renault while F2 runner-up Lando Norris moves up from a reserve role to make his Formula One debut.
Alonso has kept open the possibility of a return, not entirely convincingly, but Brown said McLaren, former champions without a win since 2012, saw the pairing as a long-term one.
« We needed to make a change, a bit of a fresh start, » said the American. « We wanted to go with a young line-up that we can hold on to for a while. »
http://www.espn.com/f1/story/_/id/25382908/mclaren-boss-tips-stoffel-vandoorne-f1-comeback
