Lando Norris Will Join Sainz At McLaren After Vandoorne Confirms Departure

The Formula 1 driver market jigsaw for the 2019 season continues to take shape as the current campaign progresses with McLaren Racing confirming they will have an all-new lineup for the upcoming campaign.

Stoffel Vandoorne confirmed he will be leaving the Woking-based team at the end of the 2018 season after spending two seasons with the team, during which time they have mostly struggled fighting on the wrong end of the grid.

The Belgian’s departure comes just two and a half weeks after his current McLaren teammate Fernando Alonso announced he will be leaving F1 at the end of the season. Vandoorne is keen to remain in the sport but is yet to confirm his plans for next season.

“I’m very grateful to McLaren for investing their faith in me over the past five years. I joined McLaren as a young driver and have since seen my career progress within the team from Test and Development Driver to Reserve Driver and then to full-time race driver,” Vandoorne said via a statement on McLaren’s official site. “While we haven’t achieved the success we’d all hoped for, I’ve really enjoyed the past two seasons racing for McLaren and I have a great relationship with everyone in the team."

“My time at McLaren has been a great chapter in my career and I’m thankful for the opportunity the team, Shaikh Mohammed bin Essa Al Khalifa and Mansour Ojjeh have given me to gain valuable Formula 1 experience and develop as a driver. I intend to give it my all for the remaining seven races of this season, and will announce my plans for next season in due course,” he added.

McLaren CEO Zak Brown thanked Vandoorne for his contributions to the team and admitted that the team were unable to provide him with a car that could showcase his true talents.

The Belgian has won many talents in junior formula categories, but struggled in the bottom half of the grid during his time with McLaren. Brown confirmed they will announce their full driver lineup in “due course”.

“We’re immensely thankful for Stoffel’s dedication, hard work and commitment during his time at McLaren. He’s a talented racing driver with an incredible list of accolades in his junior career. We’re proud to have played a part in his break into Formula 1, from his role as Test Driver to his fantastic points-scoring debut in Bahrain in 2016,” Brown said.

“It’s clear we haven’t provided Stoffel with the tools to show his true talent, but throughout our relationship he’s proved to be a fantastic team player. His work ethic is impressive, he has a great reputation within the team and we’ve really enjoyed working with him. Of course, we would have loved to achieve more success during our time together, but that doesn’t detract from the fact that he will always be a part of the McLaren family of grand prix drivers,” he added.

Renault driver Carlos Sainz was confirmed Alonso’s replacement in August, and just a day after confirming Vandoorne's departure, the team have revealed that Lando Norris will replace the Belgian at the team in 2019. The 18-year-old is currently competing in the FIA Formula 2 Championship and sits second in the standings with four races to go.

Racing Point Force India drivers Sergio Perez and Esteban Ocon were in the running but the team has chosen to stick with Norris, who has been part of the McLaren Junior Driver Program since 2017.

“We’re very pleased to finally be able to reveal who will complete our driver line-up at McLaren for 2019," Brown said Monday. “We believe Lando is an exciting talent, full of potential, who we’ve very deliberately kept within the McLaren fold for exactly that reason."