Kiwi driver loses F1 spot
Formula One team Toro Rosso has confirmed that New Zealand’s Brendon Hartley will lose his drive for 2019.
Hartley will be replaced by British-born Thai driver Alexander Albon.
Hartley has endured an up and down time with the team and finished the F1 season by coming 12th in the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix following an early crash.
‘‘I didn’t have anywhere to go with the crash into turn eight and I had to go off track to avoid the cars in front,’’ Hartley said after that race.
‘‘I ran in to some debris and damaged the front wing so I had to stop on the first lap and then did a whole race on one set of tyres with the old spec front wing, which was always going to be an uphill battle.’’
Now Toro Rosso have confirmed in a statement that Albon will team up with Daniil Kvyat next season.
‘‘Alexander had an impressive Formula 2 season in 2018. He won four races and finished the championship third,’’ Toro Rosso team principal Franz Tost said.
Hartley, 29, had a year to run on his contract, but has still lost his seat.
He scored four points in the F1 drivers’ championship to finish 19th of the 20 drivers.
The teams have all-but confirmed their driver lineups for 2019, with just one spot still available at Force India.
However, Canadian Lance Stroll is expected to pick that up, meaning Hartley’s immediate driving future is slightly uncertain.
Hartley made his F1 debut last year and was given a full-time drive for 2018 following some encouraging performances.