“Truthfully, it is not placing on any strain”. That’s what Victor Martins instructed Motorsport.com forward of the Components 2 season which he entered as one of many drivers tipped to battle for championship honours in 2024.
In spite of everything, he was the highest-placed 2023 driver to return for the brand new season, having completed fifth on 150 factors, a complete 20 higher than future Haas F1 driver Oliver Bearman. This after successful the earlier 12 months’s F3 title!
Nonetheless, the season has thus far didn’t stay as much as the lofty expectations with the opening 5 rounds guaranteeing that the remainder of the marketing campaign was merely a injury limitation train.
Whereas this might, partly, be put all the way down to the clear issues that ART was having in getting in control with how greatest to make use of the all-new F2 chassis, additionally it is potential that all the pre-season hype had the truth is crept below the Frenchman’s pores and skin.
Finally, a run of simply 4 high 10 leads to the opening 10 races of the season derailed any hope that Martins had of gaining an F1 promotion, a risk that turned a real actuality when Esteban Ocon’s Alpine exit was confirmed following Could’s Monaco Grand Prix.
Alpine in the end regarded in-house for Ocon’s substitute, lastly deciding on Jack Doohan in August – however this adopted what was extensively considered as a shootout check between the Australian and former F1 driver turned Alpine World Endurance Championship pilot, Mick Schumacher. Word the shortage of Martins on this.
Jack Doohan will companion Pierre Gasly at Alpine for his rookie F1 season
Picture by: Andrew Ferraro / Motorsport Photographs
Whereas Martins had unquestionably suffered with poor luck within the early section of the 12 months – an engine failure in Bahrain, being caught out by pink flags in Australian qualifying and being the harmless bystander in a Monaco lap one crash – there have been additionally very expensive errors from himself like a lap one crash in Saudi Arabia and a woeful qualifying at Imola.
Mixed, this appeared to place Martins out of competition for a seat which, for a lot of, was his to lose ought to it turn into obtainable.
Nonetheless, the Frenchman has since turn into a tantalising prospect as soon as extra, with an uptick in type seeing him turn into one of many F2 type drivers with 4 second-place finishes within the final eight races.
Now eighth within the championship, Alpine has seen sufficient to place Martins as its candidate for the WEC rookie check which is able to happen in Bahrain on 3 November.
Alpine endurance workforce principal Philippe Sinault stated: “We have now the chance to run Victor Martins within the Rookie Check session. He is a superb driver we all know nicely, Alpine Academy member and dealing quite a bit with the Components 1 workforce within the simulator.
“We need to give him a brand new expertise behind the wheel of an endurance prototype and he’ll be capable of deliver a contemporary perspective to our Hypercar, which is at all times fascinating at this section of the programme.”
This might provide a possible subsequent step for Martins, with solely an F1 reserve function showing seemingly within the brief time period.
And the possibility of securing a WEC race seat is a sensible prospect, with just lately appointed sporting director Nicolas Lapierre retiring from his driving function creating one opening, and the way forward for Schumacher and questions over whether or not Mercedes would enable Jules Gounon, who’s the present reserve driver and has a number of outings to his title already, to finish a full marketing campaign creating additional house.
Alpine is fourth within the 2024 Hypercar standings
Picture by: Andreas Beil
Talking of his preliminary alternative within the check, Martins stated: “I’m tremendous pleased with this chance, and I’m very grateful to Alpine Endurance Staff for permitting me to proceed studying on the earth of motorsport.
“It is a chance for me to proceed to construct my expertise with new engineers and a brand new automobile, in addition to a possibility to indicate my potential.”
However whereas the chance to compete in WEC and the enduring Le Mans 24 Hours are more likely to be an attractive prospect, Martins conceded: “Though I’m very centered on my single-seater journey, it’s a problem that I settle for with pleasure and I hope that we’ll maximize the Rookie Check day, each on my aspect for studying, but additionally to permit the workforce to have good knowledge as a part of their growth.
“I am unable to wait to find this Hypercar, which appears very quick!”
So is Martins the WEC reply that Alpine is looking for, or is he merely a field ticked for the rookie check?
Properly, the reply might be sure to each. He’s the perfect reply to fill the potential driving void for the long run and will seemingly turn into a top-level expertise in WEC. However on condition that even within the assertion launched by Alpine confirming his check he’s pouring chilly water on the prospect of a swap at this stage of his profession, it appears that evidently a full-time crossover isn’t foremost on his radar.
Whereas there isn’t a hurt in operating a 3rd F2 season, it isn’t one thing that’s considered in a broadly optimistic gentle, which means that many drivers linked to F1 groups fall as an alternative into reserve roles, with various ranges of testing programmes to maintain their hand in and consider their F1 potential.
Simply as was the case with Doohan, that is the most certainly possibility for Martins.
So having answered sure to him being the perfect reply to Alpine’s issues – which he undoubtedly has the potential to be – the reply to the query, will he be the eventual reply, might be a no at this stage.
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