How did Hamilton’s replacement do in Mercedes F1 practice outing?

Mercedes reserve driver de Vries got the chance to sample the W13 for the first time in the first practice session on Friday afternoon at Paul Ricard.

The seven-time world champion gave up FP1 to de Vries as part of the requirement for teams to field rookie drivers during practice sessions throughout the 2022 F1 season. 

Borrowing Hamilton’s car, de Vries - who made his FP1 debut for Williams earlier this year at Barcelona - posted a best time of a 1m35.426s on Pirelli’s softest tyres on his way to finishing the session ninth, half a second down on Mercedes regular George Russell. 

“I felt like we had a good session,” de Vries summarised following his second FP1 outing of the season. 

“I felt like we were fairly quick on the pace. The grip is high here so it gives you a lot of confidence to push. 

“I wasn’t entirely satisfied with my soft tyre run because on my second lap I made a few mistakes and then we didn’t do two consecutive. Nevertheless, it was a good session. 

“We managed to do good work for the team to get a little bit more learning on the things they have brought for this weekend, so generally I think it was a good session.” 

Russell previously said it is not fair on young drivers to be thrown in at the deep end and face scrutiny for their performances in practice appearances, given the many variables at play. 

Reigning Formula E champion de Vries admitted it is “tricky” to strike the balance of completing the specific programme set out by Mercedes against wanting to demonstrate his capabilities by setting an eye-catching lap time. 

“First of all, you are jumping in Lewis Hamilton’s car, a seven-time world champion and jumping in a Mercedes who have been dominating for the past eight seasons - so they are the best of our sport,” de Vries explained. “That’s a real privilege and honour, so first of all you want to live up to the expectations and the honour to do that. 

“At the same time you need to be focused on the job that is expected from you, because they obviously have a weekend ahead. You want to show a little bit of yourself and you obviously can’t put a foot wrong. 

“That’s a difficult balance and challenge to manage, but that’s part of our job and that’s also what makes it exciting, in those moments, to be given those opportunities. I’ve waited for that, and I think it went well, so I’ve enjoyed it.”

Hamilton was spotted in the garage alongside Mercedes boss Toto Wolff, who revealed the Briton had been helping to ‘coach’ de Vries.

“I was a bit confused because I came in there and he [Hamilton] was sat in my seat, and I thought why are you not in the car?” Wolff told Sky. 

“Obviously, I then realised. It was interesting because he was coaching Nyck, he was helping him with the overlays and it was quite interesting to see.” 

Where does de Vries’ future lie? 

De Vries faces an uncertain future with Mercedes pulling out of Formula E at the end of the current season, while a move to F1 with the works’ team looks highly unlikely. 

"I think if we are not able to provide him with an interesting F1 project, in a way, we need to let him go,” admitted Wolff. “We are looking at the various options, sportscars or maybe Formula E. 

“You must never give up on the opportunity that an F1 door can open. Today was very, very good.” 

Wolff added: “I can’t really help him. We can’t really tell any team to look at him and consider him as that would feel like an interference and that goes the contrary way.

The 27-year-old Dutchman has found himself linked with an F1 seat in recent years but a move so far is yet to materialise. 

Asked if he now needs to make a choice on whether he closes the door on F1 for good, de Vries responded: “Ultimately, I don’t have the answer to that question. I think the only way to make sure to continue your career successfully is to perform and do your best. 

“That’s the only thing I can do. Of course, we’ve seen a situation like with Brendon [Hartley at Toro Rosso], where he’s come back to F1 after doing some endurance racing for a little while. 

“You never know what’s going to happen in the future but you’ve got to be realistic and honest and ultimately the only thing I can do is to perform on track. That’s what I’ll try to do and then we’ll see.”

He added: “In general, F1 is a very dynamic industry and business and things move very quickly and all I can do is my part. The rest is pretty much out of my control. 

“So I will just continue to focus on that and time will tell where I will end up.”