Stoffel Vandoorne is a Belgian professional race car driver in Formula E. In the past, he has competed for McLaren in Formula One. He is considered an exceptional driver and is widely respected because unlike most of his colleagues, he worked his way up the junior ranks without sponsorship deals or financial backing from any major players. He went from being a talent to watch to scoring several championship victories using pure talent, and no family name, marketing, or money.
The driver is on reserve for Mercedes in 2019 as a simulator driver and has previously been on the sidelines in the Japanese Super Formula. Vandoorne splits his time between Roeselare in his home country, Belgium, and Monte Carlo in Monaco. He is currently racing for HWA Racelab after leaving McLaren, where he was contracted to fill the seat of the injured F1 champion, Jenson Button.
Stoffel Vandoorne Biography [Age]
Vandoorne was born on March 26, 1992, in Kortrijk, Belgium to a father who was an architect. He became obsessed with motorsports after his father, Patrick designed a restaurant at a local kart track, and the owner of the business put Vandoorne, a six-year-old at the time, in a kart and let him drive around.
His family had no money, so he never really considered a career in racing, but he decided to give it a shot after winning a competition that cost him €100 to enter, which was set up by the Belgian motorsport federation. After that, winning wasn’t an option, it was a necessity. He had to win every competition he participated in order to keep advancing and secure what little sponsors he had.
Although lack of money prevented Vandoorne from partaking in more than 4 races each year, he was crowned the Belgian KF2 Champion at 16. Stoffel Vandoorne came second in the CIK-FIA World Cup and won the Royal Automobile Club of Belgium steering wheel competition in 2009. Vandoorne kick-started his car racing career with €45,000 prize he won.
The following year, Vandoorne joined the F4 Eurocup 1.6 series and won the championship, ending the 2010 season with 6 victories and three finish positions. Once again, he utilized his prize money to advance to the next level, the Eurocup Formula Renault 2.0. FIA took notice of him and he secured a sport in their driver academy.
He competed on the KTR team with Kurt Mollekens. He came fifth place overall, with a podium finish and an eight-point-scoring finish in the 2011 season. Vandoorne also came in third place overall with eight podium finishes in the Formula Renault 2.0 Northern European Cup. He switched teams from KTR to Josef Kaufman Racing and went on to win the 2012 Eurocup championship. Daniil Kvyat was Vandoorne’s closest contender that season; they both finished 100 points ahead of the person that came third overall. Vandoorne went ahead to compete in seven races in the Northern European Cup, five of which he won with a podium finish in the sixth race.
Stoffel Vandoorne competed in the Formula Renault 3.5 in 2013, replacing the reigning champion Robin Firjins. He came second place behind McLaren’s Kevin Magnussen, claiming 4 wins and 10 podium finishes. He earned a spot in McLaren’s Young Driver Programme, and he was selected as their third driver in Formula One.
The fast-rising driver made his GP2 Series debut in 2014. He claimed four wins, four pole positions, and six podiums, finishing in second place behind the winner, Jolyon Palmer. Vandoorne was regarded as the chief title contender in the 2015 season. He raced with ART, partnering with Nobuharu Matsushita, the Japanese Formula Three champion. Vandoorne won the championship, finishing 108 points ahead of Alexander Rossi, his closest contender.
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The champion competed in the Super Formula in 2016, racing with a Honda. He achieved the highest rank amongst Honda racers, coming in fourth place with two wins and one pole position. Vandoorne went on to replace injured Fernando Alonso for the Bahrain Grand Prix competition, making history as the first reserve driver to score points on his first outing since 2007. This success spurred McLaren to announce that Vandoorne would be replacing Jenson Button in the coming season.
In 2017, he made his full-season debut for McLaren, finishing in the top 10 across all competitions. He was retained for the following season. However, Vandoorne experienced some difficulties maintaining his success, and ended up in 16th place in the championship at the end of the season. He left McLaren for Mercedes as a simulator driver. He would also leave the Formula One to race for HWA Racelab in Formula E.
Salary and Net Worth
Like other sports, motorsport is a lucrative affair and its drivers earn enviable amounts of money by way of salaries which culminates in massive net worth. Stoffel Vandoorne is regarded as one of the top-level racers in the business and his value is reflected in how much he is paid. The Belgian earns around $300,000 annually as the sum of his wages plus bonuses. Stoffel Vandoorne has an estimated net worth of $7 million, which might increase significantly depending on his success in the coming seasons.
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