30/12/2021
NEWS STORY
Antonio Giovinazzi channels his inner-Arnie as he vows that he will return to the F1 grid.
It's all change at Alfa Romeo in 2022, as Valtteri Bottas and Guanyu Zhou replace Kimi Raikkonen and Antonio Giovinazzi.
Whilst the Finn's retirement was always on the cards, the Italian outfit appears to have given up on Giovinazzi who made his F1 debut with 'parent' team Sauber in 2017.
In three seasons with Alfa, the first in 2019 was the best, the youngster finishing 5th in the Brazilian Grand Prix at Interlagos.
That first season he finished 17th in the overall standings with 14 points, while in the following two seasons he finished 17th again in 2020 (4 points) and 18th this year with 3.
Admittedly, the Alfa hasn't been the best car, nonetheless many expected more from Ferrari Academy protege. Indeed, when teammate Kimi Raikkonen was ruled out of the Dutch and Italian rounds this year due to COVID, Giovinazzi failed to convincingly dominate his temporary replacement, Robert Kubica, who hadn't raced an F1 car since 2019.
Undaunted, as he heads to Formula E, Giovinazzi insists that he will be back on the F1 grid... in time.
"I'm leaving for now," he tells the official F1 website. "I posted my first picture in a F1 car when I was three years old on my social media," he recalls.
"The last picture in F1 is not this year," he continues. "We saw already many drivers have stopped for one year and come back, like Esteban Ocon and Alex Albon.
"On my side, I had two years reserve driving for Ferrari in 2017 and 2018 and finally got my chance in 2019. You never know what will happen in F1.
"For now, I want to say thanks to all the people who have supported me in the last three years, to all the fans who supported me after the news, and to all the drivers here in F1 who texted me. It's been a great three years."
Alongside his Formula E duties, in 2022 Giovinazzi will share the role of reserve driver at Ferrari with Mick Schumacher.
"One of the things I will do next is to keep one foot in the F1 paddock," he says. "I'm still part of the Ferrari family.
"We're trying to have the same things next year, it's important to stay here and see if there is a chance in 2023. We're looking for this, and I'd be happy to continue with them. Ferrari has been my first family here in F1, they took me from F2 and gave me the first chance to join a team in F1."