Kvyat in "good mental state" ahead of F1 comeback

After a year away from Formula One, soon-to-be Toro Rosso driver Daniil Kvyat has revealed that he's currently in a good mental state ahead of his return to the grid, something which wasn't the case last year at the team.

After his demotion from Red Bull back to Toro Rosso in 2016, things went downhill quickly for the Russian. His performances got worse and worse, until he eventually got axed from the team ahead of the American Grand Prix in 2017. 

He took a year off from F1, working as a simulation driver for Ferrari, which was good for the mental state he was in.

Now, a year after initially getting axed by Toro Rosso, he's set to make his comeback at that very team. He is not the same man he was a year ago, though, as he says he is in a way better place.

"I'm very happy to be back," the 24-year-old was quoted by F1i.com.

"But you cannot be happy forever. You have to recognise that there is a lot of work ahead, and I've worked hard on myself this year.

"It's very important to be in a good mental state and that is exactly what I was focusing on this year, even though very recently it was not certain that I would go back.

"Once I heard it, I was confident it would be very positive."

Franz Tost, team boss at Toro Rosso, echoed that statement, saying Kvyat looked different than before.

"He's relaxed and I have the feeling he is much more measured than the year before," Tost added.

"I expect a competitive Daniil Kvyat."