Toro Rosso confirms Daniil Kvyat's return for 2019

Never two without three. Dismissed by the Austrian energy drink giant at the end of 2017, Daniil Kvyat will find a starting role in his junior team in 2019 Toro Rosso, the same one where he made his debut in the premier category in 2014. 

Crowned with a GP3 Series title at the time, the Ufa native delivered an honest first campaign. Even though he had scored fewer points than his more experienced teammate Jean-Eric Vergne, Red Bull decided to promote Kvyat to the parent team of Milton Keynes following the sudden departure of Sebastian Vettel in Ferrari. 

Author of a solid 2015 season including a podium in Hungary and a points capital greater than Daniel Ricciardo, the Russian then entered a negative spiral at the start of 2016, despite a new Top 3 in China at the start of the season. 

In the wake of a Russian Grand Prix marred by a double contact with Vettel in the first round, Red Bull made the decision to send Kvyat back to Toro Rosso to increase the nugget Max Verstappen. The former GP3 champion never really recovered from this demotion and dragged out his misery for a year and a half before being sidelined to make way for Pierre Gasly at the 2017 Malaysian Grand Prix. 

He will return to freelance in Austin that year, the Norman being retained in Japan for the Super Formula final. Left free by Red Bull, Kvyat found refuge near Maranello where his development role was limited to sessions in the simulator and tests to evaluate Pirelli tires. 

After Gasly's promotion to Red Bull to replace Daniel Ricciardo and faced with the shortage of talent in its young driver pipeline, Red Bull went looking for the one who had been left by the wayside less than a year ago. year. 

« I would like to thank Red Bull and Toro Rosso for giving me this opportunity to return to Formula 1 as holder, says Kvyat. I am particularly happy to return to a team that I know very well and that I appreciate. Toro Rosso has always made me feel at home and I am convinced that it will be the same next year.

I would also like to thank Ferrari for giving me the opportunity to work as a development driver. I learned a lot from them and now feel stronger and prepared than ever. I never gave up hope of returning to competition. I am still young and have stayed in shape to seize the slightest opportunity that presents itself ».

« I think Daniil deserves another chance in Formula 1, confides Franz Tost, team principal of Toro Rosso. He is a very talented driver with fantastic natural speed, as he has already been able to prove on several occasions. He had difficult times but I am convinced that he had time to mature. We will do everything to give him a good car and I have a feeling we haven't seen his full potential yet. ».