Maserati has announced the addition of Stoffel Vandoorne, the Season 8 world champion, and Jake Hughes to their driver lineup, replacing Maximilian Günther and Jehan Daruvala.
The Monaco-based team will feature an entirely new driver pairing next season. Vandoorne joins from DS Penske, another Stellantis-owned team, while Hughes makes a surprising move from McLaren.
Reports suggest that Günther is expected to replace Vandoorne at DS Penske, essentially resulting in a direct swap between the two within the Stellantis group.
The Belgian driver had a challenging two seasons with DS Penske, with his notable achievements being a pole position in São Paulo last year and a podium in Monaco. Vandoorne, a seasoned Formula E world champion known for his speed and experience, hopes to unlock his full potential with Maserati.
“I’m very happy to be joining Maserati MSG Racing next season and I’m proud to be associated with such an iconic name within motorsport as Maserati,” Vandoorne said.
“”I’m excited to start working with the team – although I haven’t worked directly with them before, I know the team well, both from my time at DS Penske but also from my time with Mercedes when we shared a powertrain with Venturi.
“They are a great bunch of people, very skilled, very determined and I’m really looking forward to working with them. Hopefully, we’ll have a lot of success and fight for victories and championships together.”
Hughes, after two successful seasons with McLaren, also joins Maserati. He had an impressive debut campaign last year, claiming two pole positions. This year, in his second FE season, he secured another two poles and his first podium in Shanghai.
Hughes expressed his excitement about joining Maserati, saying, “I’m over the moon to be joining Maserati MSG Racing.
“The success that the team has had, as one of the founding teams in Formula E, speaks for itself. On a personal level, I have worked with the team previously so I know them well and I’m genuinely looking forward to going back.
I know that the season has only just finished but I honestly can’t wait to get over to the HQ in Monaco and start working with the engineers, get on the simulator and really get cracking with our prep for Season 11. This marks the start of an exciting new chapter in my career, and I know that the best is yet to come.”