Nyck de Vries: a comeback in Hypercar?
After a very disappointing stint in F1 with AlphaTauri, Nyck De Vries could make a return to endurance racing. A seat with Toyota in 2024 is not out of the question. He could potentially replace José Maria Lopez.
The wheel could turn for Nyck de Vries: the 28-year-old Dutchman had a short and unsuccessful stint in Formula 1 and could find a spot in WEC.
His stint at Williams (Italy 2022) had earned him praises from the paddock and a seat at AlphaTauri this year. However, despite being a Formula E world champion, Red Bull showed no mercy and dropped him after the British Grand Prix, in favor of Daniel Ricciardo.
The link with endurance racing is obvious: Nyck de Vries, who has competed in the 24 Hours of Le Mans four times, was initially set to join Toyota N°7, alongside Kamui Kobayashi and Mike Conway. His move to F1 allowed José Maria Lopez to extend his contract with Toyota for an additional year.
The Argentinian and the Dutch are currently in discussions with Toyota. According to our colleagues at Autosport, Rob Leupen, the director of the Japanese team, said he is (still) in contact with Nyck, because we are both from the Netherlands. But there is currently no decision, we are happy with our line-up.
As for Lopez «, I’m no longer 20 years old (…) but I would still like to stay at Toyota. We’ll see. »
Endurance and De Vries: it’s personal experience!
Nyck de Vries has taken part in three full seasons in the World Endurance Championship: he had participated, in LMP2, in the 2018-2019 Super Season, and then in the 2019-2020 season with Racing Team Netherlands. In 2021, the year he won the world title in FE, he had three guest appearances, two with G-Drive at Spa and Le Mans, and one with RTN, with a LMP2 podium finish in Monza (3rd).
To this day, Nyck de Vries’s best result on the iconic Le Mans race is a 4th place in LMP2, achieved with the TDS Racing x Vaillante team. A seat at Toyota would propel him into contention for the overall classification.
Note that if the Dutchman were to go to Toyota, he could also return to Formula E. Originally planned to go to Nissan, his path could ultimately lead him to Maserati, following Eduardo Mortara’s departure. Confirmations should be coming soon. But redemption could be there for someone who was long overlooked by F1.
