Breaking news

Formula 1

Kvyat joins Alpine as reserve F1 driver

Ex-AlphaTauri and Red Bull Formula 1 driver Daniil Kvyat has joined Alpine as a reserve driver ahead of the 2021 season.

Luke Smith

Luke Smith

Edited: Mar 2, 2021, 5:31 PM

Copy link

Share on Facebook

Share on Twitter

Share on WhatsApp

Share on Linkedin

Share on Pinterest

Share on Viber

Add as a preferred source

Daniil Kvyat, Alpine F1 Team Reserve Driver

Kvyat dropped off the F1 grid at the end of the 2020 season after AlphaTauri opted to sign Red Bull youngster Yuki Tsunoda to partner Pierre Gasly for 2021.

It marked the end of Kvyat's third stint with the Faenza-based squad, and a second exit from the Red Bull umbrella of drivers, having previously departed at the end of 2017.

But Kvyat will remain within the F1 paddock this year after Alpine announced on Tuesday that the Russian would be joining its line-up as a reserve driver for the 2021 campaign.

"We have a strong addition to the team in Daniil Kvyat, who is going to be our reserve driver for the season," announced Alpine CEO Laurent Rossi.

"We're pretty happy about that, because in a pandemic, it is important for us to have a strong back up, and Daniil has proven that he is a very quick and reliable driver in very difficult conditions.

"He has already scored three podiums at the age of 26, so we are very, very happy that someone is going to be able to step up if the need arises and score the points, take the car where it should be at the end of the line.

"So we are quite happy about this strong addition to our team."

"I am very excited to join the Alpine F1 Team family," said Kvyat.

"The team has achieved some great results in the past year and is very technologically advanced. Development has been strong, and I am aiming to contribute to this positive trend.

"I will try to bring my experience on and off track to help develop the A521 and future cars as well. As a reserve driver you need to keep sharp and I look forward to integrating into the team in several different areas."

Kvyat made his F1 debut with Toro Rosso in 2014 before moving up to the senior Red Bull squad for the following year, scoring his maiden podium at the 2015 Hungarian Grand Prix.

But a difficult start to the 2016 season led to Kvyat being demoted back to Toro Rosso, and ultimately lose his seat at the end of 2017.

After working with Ferrari for one year in a development role, Kvyat made a surprise return to Toro Rosso for 2019, and scored a shock podium for the team at that year's German Grand Prix.

He was overlooked for a promotion back to Red Bull, though, and with the emergence of Tsunoda in F2 last year, was left without a seat for 2021.

Kvyat takes over the role from Sergey Sirotkin, who served as Renault's reserve through 2020 before the team's rebrand.

We want your opinion!

What would you like to see on Motorsport.com?

Take our 5 minute survey.

- The Motorsport.com Team

Read and post comments

Read also :

Share Or Save This Story

Copy link

Share on Facebook

Share on Twitter

Share on WhatsApp

Share on Linkedin

Share on Pinterest

Share on Viber

Previous article Alpine presents new A521 Formula 1 car

Next article Williams to use augmented reality for F1 car launch

Top Comments

There are no comments at the moment. Would you like to write one?

View More & Comment

More from

Luke Smith



1998 Belgian GP: When the Schumachers went to war

Formula 1

Formula 1 Jul 22, 2025

1998 Belgian GP: When the Schumachers went to war



The race that transformed perceptions of Red Bull

Formula 1

Formula 1 Apr 19, 2023

The race that transformed perceptions of Red Bull



Hamilton in the process of selecting Brad Pitt’s co-star for F1 movie

Formula 1

Formula 1 Feb 18, 2023

Hamilton in the process of selecting Brad Pitt’s co-star for F1 movie

More from

Daniil Kvyat



Ex-F1 driver Daniil Kvyat impresses on Super GT debut with sixth place

Super GT

Super GT

Okayama

7 mo

Ex-F1 driver Daniil Kvyat impresses on Super GT debut with sixth place



Kvyat: Lamborghini can target WEC wins next year with car upgrades

WEC

WEC

Fuji

Oct 8, 2024

Kvyat: Lamborghini can target WEC wins next year with car upgrades



TGM held talks with Kvyat for 2024 Super Formula debut

Super Formula

Super Formula

Motegi

Sep 6, 2024

TGM held talks with Kvyat for 2024 Super Formula debut

More from

Alpine



How seizing every chance – and making it happen – keeps Pierre Gasly’s fire burning

Formula 1

How seizing every chance – and making it happen – keeps Pierre Gasly’s fire burning



"Colapinto never hit the apex" – Audi's take on contentious Nico Hulkenberg penalty in Brazilian GP

Formula 1

Formula 1

Sao Paulo GP

3 d

"Colapinto never hit the apex" – Audi's take on contentious Nico Hulkenberg penalty in Brazilian GP



A fond farewell to a few WEC favourites

WEC

Monza

A fond farewell to a few WEC favourites

Latest news



2027 Formula E drivers and teams: The line-up so far

Formula E

FE Formula E 2 h

2027 Formula E drivers and teams: The line-up so far



Kimi Antonelli meets Italian president Sergio Mattarella

Formula 1

F1 Formula 1 2 h

Kimi Antonelli meets Italian president Sergio Mattarella



How seizing every chance – and making it happen – keeps Pierre Gasly’s fire burning

Formula 1

How seizing every chance – and making it happen – keeps Pierre Gasly’s fire burning



How Qatar red flag helped Johann Zarco put Barcelona crash behind him

MotoGP

MGP MotoGP

Qatar GP

3 h

How Qatar red flag helped Johann Zarco put Barcelona crash behind him

Feature

Discover prime content



How seizing every chance – and making it happen – keeps Pierre Gasly’s fire burning

Formula 1

By Jake Boxall-Legge

How seizing every chance – and making it happen – keeps Pierre Gasly’s fire burning



Tough love and F1 titles – A key life lesson behind Wolff's Mercedes success

Formula 1

Sao Paulo GP

By Ronald Vording

Tough love and F1 titles – A key life lesson behind Wolff's Mercedes success



How Brazil showcased everything that's good about F1 - plus some that isn't

Formula 1

Sao Paulo GP

By Filip Cleeren

How Brazil showcased everything that's good about F1 - plus some that isn't



Top 10 F1 cars of the 1970s

Formula 1

By Kevin Turner

Top 10 F1 cars of the 1970s

Subscribe and access Motorsport.com with your ad-blocker.

From Formula 1 to MotoGP we report straight from the paddock because we love our sport, just like you. In order to keep delivering our expert journalism, our website uses advertising. Still, we want to give you the opportunity to enjoy an ad-free and tracker-free website and to continue using your adblocker.

You have 2 options:

Subscribe now Already subscribed? Sign in here

Already disabled your adblocker?
Reload page

Manage Alerts

Subscribe