VESTI UPDATE

3 racing cars. 8 destinations – and 22 days in a row on the road with only a 16-hour stop in the UK before Vesti returning home to his native Denmark just the other day for a brief hello. Vesti has really kick-started the 2024 season.

It has been a somewhat different April program for the young driver than he is used to at this time of year. For the first time, Vesti will also have to settle in outside the Formula One world – when he is flooring the gas pedal in the 2024 European Le Mans Series (ELMS).

But weekdays are the majority, and lots of time spent at the F1 Mercedes-AMG Petronas HQ in the UK as a simulator and reserve driver.

Vesti looks at his first experiences with ELMS as challenging, but also quite satisfying in terms of his own performance.

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I was super excited that Cool Racing allowed me to drive in the qualifying in the first race of the year in Barcelona. We qualified P4. My teammate was unlucky in his stint. It cost us some laps, which were impossible to make up for.

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It's quite another thing to suddenly have to share your car with other drivers. I have to get used to that, but there is also a lot of positives in coming to terms with that. Namely, taking things a little easier and not constantly blaming yourself if a result doesn't come. It's in my blood to always take responsibility myself, both when things go well and when things go bad. Something else that is all new to me is the heavy traffic in a series like ELMS. It is excellent training and learning, which we do not experience similarly in the Formula categories.

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AMG has also taken interest in Vesti. Most recently Vesti has visited AMG in Affalterbach for GT3 seat fitting and last week tested several days on French Paul Ricard, who brings back good memories for Vesti having made it to the top of the podium before.

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Driving a GT3 racer for AMG is truly great fun. In F2, curbs are not exactly the most obvious thing to challenge. In this car, I am attacking the curbs like crazy and here you don't have to worry for one second about whether the floor will be smashed or survive the impact. I have been smiling constantly behind that wheel!

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Vesti also manages to find important time for the business aspect of his professional racing career in between the many tasks at hand. During the recent F1 race in Shanghai, Vesti was the Guest of Honor at an evening event organized and hosted by the “Scandinavian Chambers of Commerce”. Here, Vesti told major Scandinavian companies about readiness for change, about handling pressure and about leadership.

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It was difficult. My manager had set it all up. But it was the first time I stood all alone on a stage without her to help keep me on track. But in the end perseverance and simply keeping at it even when you are a bit uneasy and out of your comfort zone you will reap the fruits. I actually think it went ok. To meet these great business people - several of whom were with me at Mercedes backstage and in the garage - to be challenged by their mindset and listen to their experiences in terms of achieving success and creating results, I absorb all of it. Being allowed to combine everything that happens during an F1 weekend with the many meetings and tasks I have at Mercedes-AMG Petronas and being allowed to do some business on the side, then the weekend simply can't get much better, as things stand with my career right now. But am I dreaming about being at a Grand Prix weekend and have absolutely no time available for anything except for one thing? Absolutely YES, because if that would be the case someone has given me a chance to prove myself in F1.

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Vesti is now in Denmark for a few days recuperating from his hectic and fast moving life in motor sports. Circuit Paul Ricard in the South of France now awaits Vesti in his second race in the ELMS later this week.