Why Mercedes' new junior doesn't see himself as the next Russell

On the current Formula 1 grid, there are four distinct approaches towards developing the next generation of grand prix drivers through junior programmes.

Red Bull has the longest-running and perhaps best-known junior programme, taking a wide net approach. It has helped launched the careers of over one-quarter of the 2021 grid, but also has an incredibly high turnover rate that means very few drivers make it right the way to a Red Bull F1 seat.

Ferrari is more selective through the Ferrari Driver Academy, embarking on a stringent education programme to help youngsters up the ladder. Mick Schumacher will become the latest F1 graduate this year, emerging from a congested F2 field in 2020 that featured five Ferrari youngsters. His goal will be to emulate Charles Leclerc, who is the biggest success story of the FDA.

The recently-relaunched Alpine academy follows a similar focus on education, although it is yet to yield an F1 graduate. F2 drivers Guanyu Zhou, Christian Lundgaard and Oscar Piastri are the leading lights of the academy trying to rectify that in the next couple of years.

When it comes to successful conversion, Mercedes has by far the most successful programme. Its highly selective nature means it only focuses on a couple of drivers at a time in junior categories, paving the way for a 100% success rate of reaching F1 with Pascal Wehrlein, Esteban Ocon and George Russell. More recently, Mercedes has reached further down the ladder, supporting Paul Aron since he was racing in F4, as well as having karters Andrea Kimi Antonelli and Alex Powell on its books.

Last month, Mercedes announced a new addition to its junior ranks for 2021: 19-year-old Frederik Vesti from Denmark. Vesti is already racing in F3, having made his debut in the FIA series last year as part of Prema's line-up.

The 2021 season may be a year where a lot of the focus will be on the future of Russell as his Williams contract expires and Mercedes weighs up where to place its star junior. But it will also be a season where Vesti looks to make a mark within its ranks and, importantly, forge his own path.

The seeds for Vesti to link up with Mercedes were sown as far back as 2018, when he first met Toto Wolff at a Formula 4 race in Germany.

"I was competing in Formula 4 at Hockenheim on the weekend Formula 1 was also running," recalls Vesti. "That day I took pole and victory and he came on the podium to reward me. It didn't seem real to me. That's when I realised that I would do anything to become a Mercedes driver and have Toto as my boss.

"At the beginning, there was only loose contacts. When I started to win, we started to talk and they evaluated not only the positive moments, but also how I reacted in the negative ones."

"I was furious, but when we got to Spa, Monza and Mugello, I had extra motivation. I wanted to show everyone that I was the best driver on the grid" Frederik Vesti

Vesti finished fourth in ADAC F4 that year before graduating to the Formula Regional European Championship for its inaugural season, switching from Van Amersfoort Racing to Prema Powerteam. The Dane would deliver one of the most dominant displays across all junior categories in 2019 as he marched to the championship with 13 wins, including eight of the first 10 rounds. It meant his stock was at a high ahead of a move onto the F1 undercard in 2020.

Prema signed Vesti to its all-conquering FIA F3 squad that had swept to a 1-2-3 in the championship the previous year, having also drafted him in as a last-minute replacement for Macau the previous year. He started the season well in Austria, taking pole and the Saturday win in support of the Styrian Grand Prix, but only picked up half points after rain meant the race could not be run to full distance.

But then came the difficult moments that Mercedes would take such an interest in. With momentum being so key in a series that was condensing its entire season into the space of 73 days, Vesti tripped up as crashes in both of the Hungary races left him scoreless. He also failed to pick up any points across the races in Barcelona, with a technical issue forcing him to retire partway through Race 1 while sitting 14th.

"I am aware that I did not do a perfect job," Vesti says, reflecting on last season. "I started well, I was always fast. Then in Hungary I had a terrible weekend that made me lose a lot of points because of two accidents in both races. The same thing happened in Spain, where in Race 1 I was forced to retire due to a technical problem, and in Race 2 I had to start from the back."

Vesti does not see the scoreless rounds as his low point, though. Instead, he focuses on what he could control himself. To him, the real failure came at Silverstone, when he failed to recapture the speed he had shown in the earlier races. While he brought home a tidy sum of points, seeing title rivals Oscar Piastri, Theo Pourchaire, Liam Lawson and Logan Sargeant notch wins and podiums left him frustrated.

"I couldn't get the same results as I had before," Vesti says. "I told myself that I would have to work even harder to get back on track. I was furious, but when we got to Spa, Monza and Mugello, I had extra motivation. I wanted to show everyone that I was the best driver on the grid."

Mercedes has always merited the fashion in which its juniors handle setbacks or failure. Esteban Ocon's strength despite falling through the gaps in the 2019 driver market won him a huge deal of praise, as was George Russell's maturity after his heartbreaking late loss in Sakhir last year when deputising for Lewis Hamilton.

PLUS: How Russell staked his claim for Hamilton's crown

Vesti's fightback in the final three races was the kind of response that fits well within Mercedes' approach. He cut a 61.5-point deficit down to just 17.5 in the final three rounds, taking Saturday wins at Monza and Mugello.

His Monza victory featured a stunning charge from 11th, while at Mugello, he defeated Jake Hughes on the very last lap after wheel to wheel fight. It was a great show of composure, racing clinically when it mattered most. He would end the year with three Saturday victories, more than any other driver.

Vesti will be the highest-placed driver returning to F3 in 2021, switching to ART Grand Prix. It has been the favoured outpost for Mercedes juniors in the past, including Russell and Ocon, who both took the GP3 title with the French team. A championship battle is naturally Vesti's target, but he is also conscious of the wider development he must show through the year.

"Obviously that is the goal I want to achieve, but to achieve it I have to focus on working as well as possible with my new team," he says. "I will have to get to know all the new members of the team and then get in the car and go as fast as possible. At the same time, we will have to grow race by race in order to aim for the title."

The Prema juggernaut has been hard to stop in FIA F3, finishing 1-2-3 and 1-3-4 in the past two years. But the loss of Vesti arguably leaves the squad weaker, even if it has drafted in Ferrari youngster Arthur Leclerc, Red Bull junior Dennis Hauger and Briton Oli Caldwell.

"Frederik's a great driver," says Prema team manager Rene Rosin. "We had a very good two seasons together. It's a pity not to be able to continue together. But that's what life brings us. I wish him all the best - but of course, I want to beat him!"

A title challenge is just a small part of Vesti's remit within the Mercedes junior ranks now. Headed up by Gwen Lagrue, the programme has placed a great deal of focus on not only securing the best results, but also surrounding drivers with the right people and instilling the right philosophies within them. They want to foster drivers who are not only good drivers, but also good people.

"For me, the choice of Mercedes does not mean pressure. It is about having a great opportunity to work with a group of extremely competitive and prepared people" Frederik Vesti

An important aspect of this is easing pressure. The selective nature of the Mercedes programme inevitably leads to a more focused spotlight, yet the team wants to ensure there is no huge amount of hype built prematurely. Tags of "the next Lewis Hamilton" or "the next George Russell" won't be used, for each driver is individual and requires a different approach. It matches well with Vesti's own mentality.

"I don't see myself as a new Russell - I see myself as Frederik Vesti," he says. "Mercedes has shown it has the tools to develop drivers like George or Esteban Ocon, but if you don't keep improving you'll never be ready for Formula 1. I've shown that I'm able to pick myself up even after difficult times and I think that's a key factor in a driver's career.

"Pressure is always there, ever since you start racing karts. For me, the choice of Mercedes does not mean pressure. It is about having a great opportunity to work with a group of extremely competitive and prepared people."

Don't expect Mercedes to create a grandeur around Vesti this year. He may be joining a programme with an astonishing success rate, but these things take time. Neither Russell nor Ocon were rushed into F1 prematurely, giving them the chance to develop at each level. The same will be true here.

But if Vesti can maximise the opportunity afforded to him within Mercedes' ranks like his predecessors, and show the same kind of resilience we saw at the end of last season in F3 when the going gets tough, it could set him up for a really exciting future.

Vesti interview conducted by Marco Dimarco