Vandoorne likes going "back to basics" in FE

Former McLaren driver Stoffel Vandoorne is happy to be driving in Formula E, as the Belgian thinks it's nice to start something fresh after several years of being in McLaren's F1 team.

After a promising debut in 2016, Vandoorne hasn't been able to match the big expectations people had of him when he came into F1. The 26-year-old was hailed as a future F1 champion after dominating Formula 2, winning seven races in his debut campaign there as he won the title.

In 2017, when he got a permanent seat at McLaren next to Fernando Alonso, things didn't go to plan. There were some nice performances here and there, but in his two years in F1, he's been a shadow of the driver people thought he could be.

Now, Vandoorne has switched to Formula E, driving for Mercedes works team HWA. 

"It’s nice to change a bit of environment," the Belgian told RaceFans.

"And actually a lot of the people here I know in the paddock. There’s a lot of drivers I’ve raced against and even the teams, there’s a lot of junior teams, mechanics that I know around, so a lot of familiar faces as well.

"But it’s nice to start something fresh. It’s almost back to basics again, the drivers have the same catering, we just spend a bit more time together."

Vandoorne is still keeping tabs in F1, though, as he also works as Mercedes' simulation driver this year. Can he ever make a comeback?