Fred Vesti has been confirmed as Mercedes’ Third Driver for the 2026 season, with the Dane admitting that he is “extremely excited” to make the step up after working with the team for the past few years.
Having first joined the Mercedes Junior Programme back in 2021, Vesti went on to become a reserve driver for the squad from 2024 onwards, a role that has also seen him participate in FP1 sessions and undertake a vast amount of simulator work.
During the Silver Arrows’ 2026 launch event – where he joined George Russell and Kimi Antonelli as the W17 car was formally introduced – it was announced that the 24-year-old is set to become Third Driver for the season ahead, a progression that he is hoping will bring him even closer to joining the grid.
“I’m extremely excited to be joining the team, George and Kimi trackside more often this year as Third Driver,” said Vesti. “That’s going to be very cool for me. I’ve worked with this team for five years now, so to step up even closer to my dream of racing in Formula 1, that’s a huge privilege.
“And obviously I’ve been working so hard on this car, W17, with everyone in Brackley, so to get to see it around the world and with F1 is going to be very special.”
Pushed on how it has felt to help in developing the 2026 challenger – as well as seeing it out on track, with the car gaining its initial mileage at the Barcelona Shakedown last week – Vesti responded: “First of all, it’s been awesome to see how motivated everyone has been on this W17, including myself.
“We’ve put in thousands of hours in the simulator, testing everything and finding new things. It’s been very cool, and to see it run out in Barcelona and run well was very, very cool to see, and hopefully I get to drive it sometime.”
Team Principal Toto Wolff also voiced his belief that Vesti “deserves the Third Driver role” before telling the Dane: “You’ve put in so many hours in developing last generation’s car and this one, the hard overnight work and trying to help us on a race weekend, and it’s a good feeling.
“You know this car probably better than anyone, and if Kimi or George were to have a fish poisoning, we know that we have a driver that can deliver. Obviously we don’t want them to have a fish poisoning, but just the sheer knowing that you’re there, that’s good.”
The news comes following the exit of former reserve driver Valtteri Bottas, who makes his return to the grid this season with Cadillac.
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