Fred Vesti: 'making champions' as Mercedes Third Driver

Tom Clarkson (0:00)

This episode is sponsored by Salesforce.

Fred Vesti (0:06)

It's a very unforgiving job as third driver. You are helping making champions, but it's not yourself.

I had followed Toto. I knew he was coming to a party. I stopped him at the red carpet and I asked him, how do I become a junior driver with you?

SPEAKER_3 (0:24)

George Russell wins the Austrian Grand Prix.

Fred Vesti (0:30)

I remember in F2, he would call me after a race and be like, Fred, what are you doing on that start? You need to do this instead. He's definitely helped me out over the years.

SPEAKER_3 (0:38)

Incredible for Kimi Antonelli, who wins the Italian Grand Prix.

Fred Vesti (0:43)

Kimi, one thing that he does quite a lot is he sends in a lot of speed into the corner. With this car, it seems to work really well.

Tom Clarkson (0:51)

There have been four Danes in Formula 1 to date, and we're waiting for our fifth great Dane on the grid.

Fred Vesti (0:58)

I have this feeling so deep in my heart that there is a seed for me, and I can feel it's coming.

Tom Clarkson (1:08)

Welcome, everyone, to this week's F1 Beyond The Grid. And I'm delighted to say we're joined by Mercedes' third driver, Fred Vesti. How are you?

Fred Vesti (1:17)

Very good. I'm honored to be on this show. I've been following for a long time.

Tom Clarkson (1:20)

Oh, Fred, it's great to have you. And before we talk Formula 1, congratulations are in order because you've arrived in Singapore as a champion. You were in Cadillac in IMSA.

Fred Vesti (1:32)

Exactly. Yeah, it's been a really good year. Obviously, super busy in F1 world as third driver, but Mercedes are letting me race.

And that's a very privileged place to be in, racing with two different manufacturers, obviously. So yeah, champion in IMSA, which has made this year very special.

Tom Clarkson (1:50)

And you like sharing cars, right, with teammates?

Fred Vesti (1:53)

Not really. It is a bit of a challenge when you've been in F3, been in F2, done a few F1 tests and FP1s, and then suddenly you got to share the car. That's definitely a change.

But actually, I will say sharing a win feels way better with your teammates than when you've won by yourself. So there's definitely a very nice ring to it in the endurance world.

Tom Clarkson (2:15)

Is it important for you to keep racing, to keep sharp, if you like?

Fred Vesti (2:19)

I couldn't imagine being a third driver without racing something else.

Obviously, it's a very unforgiving job as third driver. You are helping making champions, but it's not yourself. Obviously, I've had my own dreams of racing in Formula 1 since I was a kid, and that dream is still very much alive. So what IMSA is giving me is basically the chance to sharpen my tools as a racing driver. That will help me the day I get a chance in Formula 1

Tom Clarkson (2:50)

Right. Well, let's talk more about the third driver role. What is the job description?

Fred Vesti (2:57)

I do two jobs.

I do the track side, which is the reserve driver being available to jump into the car, knowing everything about the car, talking to the engineers weekly to understand, following every meeting, pre and post event, understanding the rules of Formula 1, so that I can replace George or Kimi anytime that's needed.

That's quite a difficult job. I'm traveling and living like a Formula 1 driver, but actually I'm not driving the car very often. I do get thrown into the car in FP1 sometimes, which is a great way of showing my talent and what I can do in a Formula 1 car. And then the second part of the job is the factory side, which is the sort of the development side, more longer term. We started working on this year's car already at the end of 24, during the 25th season. And that's what I've been doing a lot of work on. So that's up to 60 days a year in the sim, which is a lot of miles in this car.

Tom Clarkson (3:59)

We're going to break that down, but just to be clear, you are first in line for the race seat at Mercedes if George or Kimi has an issue and can't drive.

Fred Vesti (4:08)

Yeah, I think the title third driver sums it up pretty well. The team sees me as a Formula 1 driver. Sometimes they say, Fred, you're not a rookie. You have done so much testing. You are so prepared for a Formula 1 seat.