Fred Vesti: 'Making Champions' As Mercedes Third Driver | F1 Beyond The Grid Presented By Salesforce

Summary

Race highlights

The episode opens with Formula 1 highlight clips: George Russell takes the chequered flag to win the Austrian Grand Prix, and Kimi Antonelli wins the Italian Grand Prix after starting 19th. Another clip recalls Russell advising Fred Vesti on his starts during their Formula 2 years. These are brief highlights rather than full race reports.

Vesti’s role at Mercedes

Vesti arrives in Singapore as an IMSA champion, balancing sports-car racing with his role as Mercedes’ third driver. He says endurance racing keeps his skills sharp, though sharing a car with teammates is a big adjustment after racing alone in junior categories. His long-term ambition remains to race in Formula 1 and become world champion.

At Mercedes, Vesti has both trackside and factory responsibilities. He stays prepared to replace Russell or Antonelli, joins team briefings, and works with engineers on car development. He has driven roughly seven FP1 sessions, including outings in Barcelona and Budapest. He describes the challenge of making an impression in a short session in a car he may never have driven before. He prioritizes the team’s test plans, though he has sometimes been given low-fuel, soft-tyre runs.

The path to Formula 1

Vesti says timing played a major part in his path to F1. In 2023, he won six Formula 2 races and scored 11 podiums, finishing second despite several unlucky results, including losing rear wheels at Zandvoort and being taken out at Monza. With the F1 driver market unusually static that winter, he had to keep building relationships and making his case. Mercedes supports him speaking with other teams, and Vesti says it would allow him to race elsewhere if an F1 opportunity arose.

His route into Mercedes began with an audacious approach to Toto Wolff at a party: Vesti stopped him on the red carpet and asked how to become a junior driver. He believes Wolff values that kind of drive and initiative. Vesti describes Wolff as a leader who understands how to motivate people and set a clear direction.

Simulator work and car development

A major part of Vesti’s work is connecting trackside feedback with Mercedes’ simulator team in Brackley. After sessions, he helps translate drivers’ comments and engineering plans into overnight tests. The simulator’s hardware closely matches the car, he says, but the work demands precision: poor data or too many tests can undermine the results.

During a Miami weekend, he worked from 11 p.m. until 9 a.m., completing roughly 150–200 laps. The lack of real driving sensations makes simulator work especially mentally demanding.

Vesti sees the simulator as important both before and after a race. Pre-event work tests estimates and possible setups; post-event work compares those predictions against actual conditions and helps improve preparations for upcoming races. He also tests future development ideas, helping identify potential problems before Mercedes commits to building an upgrade.

Drivers and the 2026 cars

Vesti observes different strengths in the team’s drivers: Antonelli often carries more speed into corners, while Russell tends to emphasize corner exit. The best approach varies by track and corner, and Vesti says the team must blend drivers’ subjective “feelings” with engineers’ data.

He also points to the challenge of adapting to the 2026 cars, particularly battery use and power-unit behavior, and recalls Mercedes struggling at restarts in Japan.

Danish roots and racing

From 53:31: Vesti says his father raced while working several jobs and introduced him to motocross when he was a young child. Vesti began karting at eight. When a promising F4 opportunity required hundreds of thousands of euros, his family could not afford it. His father sold the family home, and an investor helped cover the remaining costs. Vesti says his family’s sacrifices remain a strong motivation to reach F1 and give back.

Away from racing, he has completed three half-Ironman events and hopes to attempt a full Ironman. The episode closes with Vesti naming Danish F1 drivers Kevin and Jan Magnussen, Nicolas Kiesa, and Tom Belsø, and reaffirming his determination to become the next Dane on the grid.

Presenters and sources

• Presenter: Tom Clarkson
• Guest: Fred Vesti
• Race-highlight audio: Formula 1 broadcast commentary; commentators are not identified in the subtitles.