Promoted to development driver at Mercedes F1 this season, Doriane Pin details the boundaries between simulator work and driving a real Formula 1 car, which she could discover on track.
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While her 2026 year marks a return to endurance with an ELMS program, including a first podium yesterday in Barcelona, and participation in the 24 Hours of Le Mans for Duqueine, the Frenchwoman remains fully focused on single-seaters, with a clear objective : reaching Formula 1.
A member of the Mercedes academy since 2024, she has reached an important milestone by becoming a development driver, a role distinct from that of third driver (assigned to Frederik Vesti), more oriented towards performance and technical optimization of the single-seaters.
In-depth work in the simulator
Concretely, her work consists of spending long hours in the simulator, in close collaboration with the team’s engineers. She participates in the evaluation of new parts, settings, and developments, with the mission of providing precise and actionable feedback.
“We work on the development of the car. There are many elements to test, and our role is to provide as much information as possible while driving ”, she explains. In the context of a regulatory revolution in 2026, this workload is particularly significant, with many configurations to validate before their introduction on track.
In parallel, Doriane Pin also takes on a mentor role within the F1 Academy, where she supports young driver Payton Wescott. Building on her title acquired in this discipline, she now puts her experience at the service of the new generation, contributing to the training of talents supported by Mercedes.
A milestone to reach
Simulator work, at the heart of her missions, impresses with its level of realism. The days there are long and intense, often from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m., with hundreds of laps accumulated to refine the settings.
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“It’s very realistic… it’s exactly the same car as in reality ”, she emphasizes, while acknowledging that some differences remain, particularly in terms of aerodynamic downforce, which is more pronounced in real conditions.
Despite this technological fidelity, the simulator remains a demanding tool, which requires a significant learning phase. “It’s a big step ”, she admits, referring to the complexity of the systems to master and the density of information to process.
Soon her chance in TPC ?
Surrounded by specialized engineers at the Brackley factory, she nevertheless benefits from an ideal environment to progress and refine her technical skills. Her performance in this exercise has also convinced Mercedes to offer her an opportunity on track.
A Formula 1 test is planned for later this year, as part of the TPC (Testing Previous Cars) program, which would make her one of the few women to drive an F1 car in testing in the 21st century. An important step in her journey, confirming the progression of a driver determined to establish herself at the highest level of motorsport.
However, one may regret, as with Jamie Chadwick before her, that Pin did not take up the challenge of facing her male opponents in single-seaters, via F3 and F2, to appear more credible in her approach. It is true that her FRECA campaigns with Prema were hardly successful…
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