Stoffel Vandoorne has no interest in following his former team McLaren in 2019.
The Belgian was considered one of their hottest talents during his junior career but struggled alongside Fernando Alonso during his two-year stint in Formula 1.
Vandoorne’s time also coincided with the end of the failed Honda project and chassis problems leaving McLaren towards the back of the grid.
Therefore, the 27-year-old was asked if he tracked their progress in Australia, where his replacement Lando Norris qualified eighth before slipping back to 12th on Sunday.
“No, I didn’t,” he told Spanish newspaper AS. “Now I work for Mercedes so I know it went very well for us.”
Indeed, Vandoorne is now part of the simulator team at the Brackley-based squad when he’s not competing in Formula E with the HWA outfit that is the precursor to Mercedes’ entry for Season 6.
“This is where I want to be, and where I want to have a strong future,” he said, despite four retirements and a best finish of 16th in six races.
“HWA will become Mercedes next year and I want to be part of it. That is my goal, to be a champion here.”
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Finally, Vandoorne issued a rather bitter-sounding jab at F1 as he praised the status of the all-electric series.
“I think it’s impossible to say the name of a driver who does not deserve to be here,” he claimed.
“In F1, of course there are very, very good drivers, but also there are some drivers that are, let’s say, less good.”
