Photo: Mercedes-AMG F1
Mercedes-AMG has announced the departure of one driver from its Junior Team’s ranks, and the arrival of another, with both entering roles in its Formula 1 team.
Doriane Pin, reigning champion of the all-female F1 Academy series for Formula 4 cars who pursued a career in single-seaters with Mercedes’ backing in 2024 after success in GT sportscars and being 2023 F4 South East Asia runner-up, will graduate from the Junior Team.
She becomes the sixth alumni of the programme by Mercedes’ own records. Four made it to F1, including the team’s current line-up of George Russell and Andrea Kimi Antonelli, while Frederik Vesti graduated after being 2023 Formula 2 runner-up. He has spent the last two years as the team’s reserve driver, and now “steps up to become the team’s third driver”.
Pin’s graduation comes after being 2024 F1 Academy runner-up, 2025 champion, and coming 10th in UAE4 two years ago with one victory. However she failed to score across 23 races in the Formula Regional European Championship, and non-scored in her six FRegional Middle East starts too.
The 22-year-old Frenchwoman’s race programme for 2026 is yet to be revealed, but she will be busy working alongside Vesti as a member of the Mercedes-AMG F1 team itself. She becomes a development driver with simulator and trackside responsibilities, which includes supporting the driver racing the Mercedes-branded car in F1 Academy this year.
Joining the Mercedes-AMG F1 Junior Team as of today is 22-year-old F2 star Joshua Duerksen. It will mark the first time in the Paraguayan’s career he has had F1 backing, and he too will have simulator duties in addition to being called upon to drive in Mercedes’ testing of previous cars (TPC) programme for the year ahead. Therefore alongside his Junior Team membership he will, like Pin, be a development driver for the F1 operation itself.
Duerksen has raced for AIX Racing in F2 the last two seasons, coming 10th in the standings as a rookie and improving to ninth in 2025. He has won four races, claimed eight other podiums but has been mired in the midfield with his qualifying form. For 2026 he will be in the line-up of Invicta Racing, which won both titles last year.
On his way up to F2, Duerksen was UAE4 runner-up, sixth in ADAC and Italian F4, 14th in FREC and 16th in FRME.