“Honestly, it’s not putting on any pressure”. That is what Victor Martins told Autosport ahead of the Formula 2 season which he entered as one of the drivers tipped to battle for championship honours in 2024.
After all, he was the highest-placed 2023 driver to return for the new season, having finished fifth on 150 points, a total 20 greater than future Haas F1 driver Oliver Bearman. This after winning the previous year’s F3 title!
However, the season has so far failed to live up to the lofty expectations with the opening five rounds ensuring that the rest of the campaign was simply a damage limitation exercise.
While this could, in part, be put down to the clear problems that ART was having in getting up to speed with how best to use the all-new F2 chassis, it is also possible that all of the pre-season hype had in fact crept under the Frenchman’s skin.
Ultimately, a run of just four top 10 results in the opening 10 races of the season derailed any hope that Martins had of gaining an F1 promotion, a possibility that became a genuine reality when Esteban Ocon’s Alpine exit was confirmed following May’s Monaco Grand Prix.
Alpine ultimately looked in-house for Ocon’s replacement, finally settling on Jack Doohan in August – but this followed what was widely viewed as a shootout test between the Australian and former F1 driver turned Alpine World Endurance Championship pilot, Mick Schumacher. Note the lack of Martins in this.
While Martins had unquestionably suffered with poor luck in the early phase of the year – an engine failure in Bahrain, being caught out by red flags in Australian qualifying and being the innocent bystander in a Monaco lap one crash - there were also very costly errors from himself like a lap one crash in Saudi Arabia and a woeful qualifying at Imola.
Combined, this appeared to put Martins out of contention for a seat which, for many, was his to lose should it become available.
However, the Frenchman has since become a tantalising prospect once more, with an uptick in form seeing him become one of the F2 form drivers with four second-place finishes in the last eight races.
Now eighth in the championship, Alpine has seen enough to position Martins as its candidate for the WEC rookie test which will take place in Bahrain on 3 November.
Alpine endurance team principal Philippe Sinault said: “We have the opportunity to run Victor Martins in the Rookie Test session. He is an excellent driver we know well, Alpine Academy member and working a lot with the Formula 1 team in the simulator.
“We want to give him a new experience behind the wheel of an endurance prototype and he will be able to bring a fresh perspective to our Hypercar, which is always interesting at this phase of the programme."
This could offer a potential next step for Martins, with only an F1 reserve role appearing likely in the short term.
And the chance of securing a WEC race seat is a realistic prospect, with recently appointed sporting director Nicolas Lapierre retiring from his driving role creating one opening, and the future of Schumacher and questions over whether Mercedes would allow Jules Gounon, who is the current reserve driver and has several outings to his name already, to complete a full campaign creating further space.
Speaking of his initial opportunity in the test, Martins said: "I am super happy with this opportunity, and I am very grateful to Alpine Endurance Team for allowing me to continue learning in the world of motorsport.
“It is an opportunity for me to continue to build my experience with new engineers and a new car, as well as an opportunity to show my potential.”
But while the opportunity to compete in WEC and the iconic Le Mans 24 Hours are likely to be an enticing prospect, Martins conceded: “Although I am very focused on my single-seater journey, it is a challenge that I accept with pleasure and I hope that we will maximize the Rookie Test day, both on my side for learning, but also to allow the team to have good data as part of their development.
“I can't wait to discover this Hypercar, which looks very fast!"
So is Martins the WEC answer that Alpine is searching for, or is he simply a box ticked for the rookie test?
Well, the answer is probably yes to both. He is the ideal answer to fill the potential driving void for the future and could likely become a top-level talent in WEC. But given that even in the statement released by Alpine confirming his test he is pouring cold water on the prospect of a switch at this stage of his career, it seems that a full-time crossover is not foremost on his radar.
While there is no harm in running a third F2 season, it is not something that is viewed in a broadly positive light, meaning that many drivers linked to F1 teams fall instead into reserve roles, with varying levels of testing programmes to keep their hand in and evaluate their F1 potential.
Just as was the case with Doohan, this is the most likely option for Martins.
So having answered yes to him being the ideal answer to Alpine’s problems – which he undoubtedly has the potential to be – the answer to the question, will he be the eventual answer, is probably a no at this stage.
