WEC world champion and Toro Rosso driver Brendon Hartley believes the path he took back to Formula 1 via the endurance series would benefit Daniil Kvyat.
Last year the New Zealander surprised many by getting a second chance with the Red Bull program, replacing Carlos Sainz for the final four races after Kvyat had previously been dropped in favour of current teammate Pierre Gasly.
The young Russian has now found refuge at Ferrari where he is a development driver but Hartley thinks the different approach of competing in the WEC would help him grow as a driver.
“Endurance racing taught me a lot because against two top teammates you’re in the same car, there’s no hiding, and then you start learning off each other,” he explained to ESPN.
“You really have this open environment where, if one guy is quicker, you have to accept that very quickly.
“There’s a bit of respect in there as well because you do your best to deliver your best performance every single day,” he added.
“But actually accepting that on a given day your teammate can do a better job than you, endurance racing teaches you that. It can definitely help you out being a more rounded driver.”
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Hartley is well placed to advise Kvyat as he too was kicked out of the Red Bull stable in 2010 and he sees some of the naivety in the 23-year-old that he and other young drivers suffered with and from.
“I think young drivers are sometimes very guilty of immediately blaming the equipment or the team, rather than looking inward a little bit,” he stated.
A chance to compete in the Le Mans 24 Hours could be on the cards for Kvyat too with Russian-backed SMP Racing keen to enter him and Williams driver Sergey Sirotkin in an LMP2 car.
“I do not know how busy he will be at Ferrari, but I would be glad to see him in our team,” founder Boris Rotenberg told Sport FM in January.