Daniil Kvyat believes there was more behind his recent demotion than what happened on the track, but what exactly it was he’s not saying.
In the wake of a wretched Russian GP, where his antics put Sebastian Vettel out of the grand prix and his own team-mate Daniel Ricciardo into the pits for repairs, Red Bull announced that Kvyat would be returning to Toro Rosso.
The Russian racer was demoted to the junior team while 18-year-old Max Verstappen was promoted in the opposite direction.
The decision came as a shock to many, Kvyat included, as one race earlier he had been on the podium, claiming the team’s first top-three result of the season.
Daniil Kvyat pleased with "crucial" @ToroRossoSpy test in Barcelona https://t.co/CAwYhAOjRX #F1 pic.twitter.com/JlaGj2CDW4
— ESPN F1 (@ESPNF1) May 18, 2016
He told Autosport: “Formula 1 is not only what you do on the track.
“There is a lot going on behind the track but I do not want to discuss this in an interview now. I keep it for myself.
“I learned a bit more and I have a very long memory.
“I will remember this decision from them.
“Now I am with Toro Rosso, the team that I like a lot and it seems like a mutual feeling.
“It seems we have a big potential and all in all, it can be a very good step for my career.”
And although the 22-year-old admits that talk of his pending axing had become a “trend” ever since he joined Red Bull in 2015, the eventual announcement was still a shock.
He does, however, believe that through it all he has come out a stronger person and driver.
“Somehow, you always know there is something in the air,” he said.
“Since I joined Red Bull, it was a bit of a trend, it was the talk.
“I was just focusing on the job on the track and everything but as it has been proved, this was not enough.
“In Sochi, I had no idea. It was a shock. It was just a confusing decision at the time.”
He added: “I had a few good days thinking about life. I learned a lot about life and I learned a lot about Formula 1.
“I feel like it made me a much, much stronger person and a driver because Formula 1 is not only what you do on the track, unfortunately.”
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