Nyck de Vries is a Dutch racing driver who most recently competed in Formula One for Scuderia AlphaTauri. He won the 2020–21 Formula E World Championship and the 2019 FIA Formula 2 Championship as well as the 2010 and 2011 Karting World Championships. He was signed to the McLaren Young Driver Programme from January 2010 until May 2019. De Vries made his Formula One debut in September 2022 as a substitute for Williams at the 2022 Italian Grand Prix. He joined Scuderia AlphaTauri for the 2023 season but was released after the 2023 British Grand Prix12.
Early career
De Vries started his racing career in karting, where he showed his talent and potential by winning several titles, including the WSK World Series, the German Junior Championship, the European KF3 Championship and the Karting World Championship twice1.
In 2012, he switched to single-seaters, joining the Eurocup Formula Renault 2.0 at R-ace GP. He achieved his first podium finish at his debut race in Alcañiz with a second place, and he managed to repeat this result at the Hungaroring. He finished the season in fifth place, beating all of his teammates. He also took part in several races of the Formula Renault 2.0 NEC, where he won a race at his home track in Assen1.
He stayed in the Eurocup for two more seasons, switching to Koiranen GP in 2013. He won one race each at the Hungaroring and the Circuit de Catalunya and again ended the season in fifth place in the championship. In 2014, he dominated the series, winning six races and finishing on the podium in 11 of 14 races. He also won the Alpine Formula Renault season with 10 wins out of 14 races1.
Formula Renault 3.5 Series
In 2015, De Vries moved up to the Formula Renault 3.5 Series with DAMS. He had a difficult start to the season, scoring only two points in the first six races. However, he improved his performance in the second half of the season, taking his first win at Le Mans and finishing on the podium four more times. He ended the season in third place behind Oliver Rowland and Matthieu Vaxivière1.
GP3 Series
In 2016, De Vries switched to the GP3 Series with ART Grand Prix, alongside Charles Leclerc, Alexander Albon and Nirei Fukuzumi. He had a strong season, winning two races at Spa-Francorchamps and Monza and finishing on the podium six more times. He was in contention for the title until the final round in Abu Dhabi, where he finished fourth behind Leclerc, Albon and Antonio Fuoco1.
FIA Formula 2 Championship
In 2017, De Vries graduated to the FIA Formula 2 Championship with Rapax. He had a mixed season, scoring one win at Monaco and three more podiums, but also suffering from reliability issues and penalties. He finished seventh in the standings with 114 points1.
He moved to Prema Racing for the 2018 season, partnering Sean Gelael. He had a better season, winning three races at Baku, Barcelona and Spa-Francorchamps and finishing on the podium seven more times. He was third in the championship behind George Russell and Lando Norris with 202 points1.
In 2019, he stayed with Prema Racing but had a new teammate in Mick Schumacher. He had his best season yet, winning four races at Monaco, Paul Ricard, Spa-Francorchamps and Sochi and finishing on the podium nine more times. He clinched the title with one round to spare at Sochi with 266 points1.
FIA Formula E World Championship
In 2020, De Vries joined Mercedes-Benz EQ Formula E Team for their debut season in the FIA Formula E World Championship. He had a promising start to his electric racing career, scoring two podiums at Diriyah and Berlin and finishing on points nine times out of eleven races. He was eleventh in the standings with 60 points1.
He continued with Mercedes-Benz EQ for their second season in 2020-21, which was also the first season to be recognized as a world championship by FIA. He had a breakthrough season, winning three races at Diriyah (Race 2), Valencia (Race 2) and Berlin (Race 2) and finishing on the podium four more times. He also scored four pole positions and three fastest laps. He became the first Formula E world champion after a dramatic final race in Berlin, where he overtook his main rival Edoardo Mortara on the last lap to secure the title with 99 points1.
Formula One
De Vries had been part of the McLaren Young Driver Programme since 2010, and he had several tests and simulator sessions with the team. He also had a test with Sauber in 2013 as a prize for winning the Formula Renault 2.0 Alps title. However, he never got a chance to race in Formula One with McLaren, as they opted for other drivers such as Norris, Carlos Sainz Jr. and Daniel Ricciardo1.
In 2019, he left McLaren and joined Mercedes as a reserve driver, alongside Stoffel Vandoorne and Esteban Gutiérrez. He had several free practice sessions with Mercedes and their customer teams Racing Point and Williams in 2020 and 2021, driving the 2022-spec cars that were introduced to reduce costs and improve racing1.
In September 2022, he got his first opportunity to race in Formula One, when Williams called him up to replace the unwell Alex Albon at the Italian Grand Prix. He impressed on his debut, out-qualifying and out-racing his teammate Nicholas Latifi to finish ninth and score two points for the team2.
His performance caught the attention of several teams, including AlphaTauri, who were looking for a new driver to partner Yuki Tsunoda for the 2023 season. After two days of talks with Red Bull advisor Helmut Marko in Austria, De Vries signed a contract with AlphaTauri, becoming the second Dutch driver on the grid alongside Max Verstappen2.
However, his stint with AlphaTauri was short-lived, as he failed to score any points in the first ten races of the season and struggled to match Tsunoda’s pace. He also had several incidents and collisions with other drivers, such as Sergio Pérez, Lance Stroll and Nikita Mazepin. He was dropped by AlphaTauri after the British Grand Prix, where he finished 16th. He was replaced by Ricciardo, who returned to Red Bull’s junior team after a disappointing spell with McLaren2.
De Vries’ future in Formula One is uncertain, as he has no contract for the 2024 season and there are few seats available. He may return to Formula E or explore other options in motorsport, such as endurance racing or IndyCar. He has shown his talent and speed in various categories, but he has not been able to translate that into consistent results in Formula One.
