Surprising: this is who De Vries spoke to first after AlphaTauri news

After years of sitting on the reserve bench in Formula 1, Nyck de Vries will finally be on the grid as a full-time driver in 2023. Although people close to him knew about the progress with AlphaTauri, it was another F1 driver who was the first to congratulate the Dutchman on his contract.

Speaking to his new employer AlphaTauri, De Vries is asked who he first told the good news to once his contract was signed. "There wasn’t one defined moment, as the process was quite complex," he replied. His family was aware of the advanced talks with the team.

The moment his F1 seat became a certainty, however, it was Pierre Gasly who was the first to congratulate him. "Once the contract was signed, Pierre was the first person I spoke to! He FaceTimed me whilst I was in the gym to congratulate me, which was really nice," the 27-year-old Dutchman said.

Meanwhile, those close to him were aware that he would most likely take over Gasly's seat. "Of course, my family were there through the whole process and when things got more serious it was my father I spoke to about it all," De Vries concluded.