Vandoorne 'not worried' about losing seat
- Published on 29 May 2018 10:51
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- By: Jeroen Jonkers
Stoffel Vandoorne says he is not worried about his future at McLaren.
The Belgian entered F1 as a highly rated and successful rookie, but some say he has failed to make an impact so far.
In fact, McLaren is openly saying it wants Fernando Alonso to stay next year, amid speculation the British team will promote hot new charger Lando Norris.
Others think Vandoorne needs to start beating Alonso or risk being left out in the cold.
"I don't think about that," the 26-year-old told Belgium's Sporza news agency.
"I focus on my own performance, which I think is more important. I just want to get everything out of my car.
"I have a long agreement with McLaren, so I'm not worried about that. A formula one contract remains a formula one contract, even if you still have to perform.
"But the team has complete trust in me. I'm not worried at all. I'm especially ready for the day when I can really race with a competitive car," Vandoorne added.
Vandoorne said after Monaco that he felt "sacrificed" by McLaren's race strategy, and admitted that McLaren sometimes gives Fernando Alonso priority in other areas too.
"He sometimes gets a few newer parts, yes, but it doesn't matter much. There's nothing wrong between us, no," he insisted.
"I think I'm still the future of the team, I don't really see anyone else. With Lando Norris, it's too early to talk about that. I'm concentrating on myself," Vandoorne said.
He said he still feels appreciated by the F1 community.
"My talent is recognised," he said. "I have not become a bad driver from one day to the next, and I'm always getting better."
Vandoorne said he is not thinking about moving to another team.
"Ferrari has been struggling for a long time and McLaren is now in a similar situation," he said.
"All the ingredients are here to get results, but of course I cannot wait ten years to get a competitive car. I want to race with a top car as soon as possible to show what I can do, but I don't think it will take McLaren that long.
"The start of the season certainly didn't go as he wanted. We all had high expectations that McLaren would take a big step forward, which was not 100 per cent successful.
"We are better than last year, but we still have to take a big step," he added.
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Replies (11)
Login to replyKean
Posts: 692
Alonso's previous teammates did beat him in quali and race from time to time, I think it's time for Vandoorne to do the same. Thus far his time in F1 has been rather lackluster.
Lotus4Ever
Posts: 26
"I have a long agreement with McLaren, so I'm not worried about that. A formula one contract remains a formula one contract, even if you still have to perform."
Well - ask Perez and Magnussen - a formula one contract is not worth the paper it is written on.
mbmwe36
Posts: 533
Exactly, and it goes for most contracts in sports, really.
I'd be pretty worried if I was Vandoorne. He's been used as a pawn a few times to help Alonso, while being pretty unspectacular the rest of the time. In some ways he remind me of Wehrlein. A LOT of hype preceeded him, but he hasn't really delivered.
calle.itw
Posts: 8,527
Yeah, McLaren typify that you cannot trust the words of a team prinicpal.
denis1304
Posts: 284
I thins he should be worried...
His contract shouldn't be that hard to pay out in full and kick him to the curb
calle.itw
Posts: 8,527
They might actually be for McLaren, they aint exactly plenty of cash since they ditched Honda.
ajpennypacker
Posts: 2,475
Stoffel indeed should be worried and I'm sure he is. Yes, Alonso's form has been impressive, but he should still not only beat him occassionally but also finish a lot closer. He's actually quite close in qualifying but he seems to fade away on Sundays. Worst of all, there doesn't seem to be a clear indication regarding the reason for his underperformance.
mcbhargav
Posts: 1,332
if you can't driver better, loose some more weight. Working so far in the new F1 era.
calle.itw
Posts: 8,527
It worked sorta well for Ericsson because he apparently had weight to lose, I'd dare you to find a single drip of fat on Vandoorne's body, because the bloke is skinny AF.
ajpennypacker
Posts: 2,475
Yeah weight is definitely not the issue. I been thinking after a year at McLaren that maybe Stoffel is not as good as I expected. Definitely F1 material, but not top talent. The problem is that he has Alonso for a teammate, who would in all likelihood make most drivers on the grid look second tier.
xoya
Posts: 583
Alonso is an epic driver and that makes his failures that much more sad.