It was confirmed Sunday in a report from MotorSport.com that Belgian Formula E driver Stoffel Vandoorne could be added, along with a third car, to the McLaren SP team for the 2022 season.
This report comes on the heels of a Sunday announcement from the team that its partnership received a long-term multi-year renewal.
“Once we get going on a third car, whenever that is, which won’t be the start of the year, we’ll then run a third car full time,” McLaren Racing CEO Zak Brown said Sunday. “We’re not going to be in and out, once we go, we’re going.”
While the team has confirmed Pato O’Ward and Felix Rosenqvist will return for the 2022 campaign, the search for a third driver is still ongoing. Arrow McLaren SP ran a third car at the Indianapolis 500 in May, which was piloted by veteran Juan Pablo Montoya. Another ex-Formula 1 wheelman, Kevin Magnussen, subbed-in for the then injured Rosenqvist at the Road America race.
“A lot of it is driver dependent,” Brown told MotorSport. “If I can’t get a driver who I think is championship caliber, then we’re not going to put out a third car just for the sake of it. I want someone who can be in the car for five years,” he added.
Brown also said he was satisfied with Montoya’s performance at Indy, and would not mind seeing him in the car for the race again in 2022.
When asked about Vandoorne specifically, who could be publicly spotted around Laguna Seca’s paddock on Saturday, Brown confirmed the 29-year-old fits the mold of the sort of driver he is seeking.
“Stoffel would definitely be under consideration,” Brown said. “I think he’s a very good racing driver.”
