The F1 outcast who became a surprise star in 2018
One of the stars of the 2018 Formula 1 season is a man not even on the grid anymore, but who has revelled in a surprise new role after being abruptly jettisoned by his team last year
"I wasn't fussed about racing this year at all. I lost quite a lot of passion for racing because of the way the whole atmosphere was. I stopped enjoying what I was doing. It soured my feeling for driving, my desire. Which was a shame, because it was all I'd grown up wanting to do."
Elite competition is meant to be difficult, but sapping someone's enthusiasm and love for the sport that enchanted them as a child is a sad and harsh consequence when it goes badly wrong.
Share Or Save This Story
The driver who can wreck F1's "super exciting" 2020 silly season
Red Bull's Verstappen now has basis for first F1 title challenge
Ferrari: Mick Schumacher a good candidate for seat in Formula 1
Hamilton felt pressure of revitalised Mercedes team-mate 'Bottas 2.0'
Alfa team boss Vasseur: Squad must maximise results in chaotic races
Honda: Verstappen F1 relationship like seeing a young Senna
Ferrari: Key team personnel running F1 would be conflict of interest
Late Spa shunt could have cost Giovinazzi his drive - Alfa
Mercedes joins Williams and RB with 'quick and cheap' F1 cockpit airflow upgrades
Alpine gets F1 spare car for first time in 2024 as lighter chassis appears in China
F1 Chinese GP: Stroll leads FP1 as small fire causes early red flag
Live: F1 Chinese GP updates – FP1 & Sprint qualifying
Why F1 2026 worst case fears could be key to new rules success
How the F1 driver market situation sits for each team with 2025 openings
What's been going wrong for Leclerc in F1's tiny margins qualifying game
What the Chinese GP's highlights reveal about its first F1 race for five years
Subscribe and access Autosport.com with your ad-blocker.
From Formula 1 to MotoGP we report straight from the paddock because we love our sport, just like you. In order to keep delivering our expert journalism, our website uses advertising. Still, we want to give you the opportunity to enjoy an ad-free and tracker-free website and to continue using your adblocker.
