Formula One drivers from Russia

There have been three Formula One drivers from Russia, all have raced in the 2010s and two have scored podium positions in Grands Prix.

Current drivers

Sergey Sirotkin made his debut for Williams Martini Racing at the 2018 Australian Grand Prix.

Former drivers

Petrov driving for Caterham at the 2012 Malaysian Grand Prix.

When Vitaly Petrov made his Grand Prix debut for Renault at the 2010 Bahrain Grand Prix he became the first driver from Russia or the former Soviet Union to compete in Formula One. His debut season yielded 13th place in the championship and a best result of 5th in Hungary - however he gained notoriety for blocking Fernando Alonso in Abu Dhabi and costing the Spaniard an almost certain title win. His 2011 season with the newly re-branded Lotus-Renault team began strongly with 3rd place at the season-opener in Australia but the car failed to maintain consistent competitiveness and he ended the season 10th in the standings. For 2012 he was dropped by Lotus and picked up by Caterham. With an inferior car he failed to score a point all season, but did finish a strong 11th in his final race in Brazil. He was not retained for the 2013 season.[1]

Kvyat driving for Toro Rosso at the 2016 Malaysian Grand Prix

Daniil Kvyat became the second Russian to compete in Formula One when he debuted with Toro Rosso at the 2014 Australian Grand Prix. He finished his first race in 9th place - an equal best result for the season matched in Britain and Belgium. He finished 15th in the championship. He was hired by Red Bull Racing for the 2015 season, finishing 7th in the championship with a career-best 2nd in Hungary. Despite finishing 3rd in China the following year, after his home race he was demoted back to Toro Rosso and was subsequently replaced by Max Verstappen. After having scored only 5 points in the 2017 season by the 2017 United States Grand Prix, he was dropped from Toro Rosso and replaced with Pierre Gasly.[2]

Timeline

Current drivers
Sergey Sirotkin 2018
Former drivers
Vitaly Petrov 2010–2012
Daniil Kvyat 2014–2017

References

  1. ↑ "F1 : Russian Formula 1 ace Petrov resigns to sabbatical year with foray into rallying". F1sa.com. 8 March 2013. Retrieved 21 March 2017.
  2. ↑ "Hartley stays at Toro Rosso for Mexico, Kvyat dropped". Motorsport.com. Retrieved 23 October 2017.
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