Hartley: "Some people didn't want me there" just a few races into 2018

Former Toro Rosso driver Brendon Hartley has revealed he lost his seat at the team only one hour after the final Grand Prix of the season in Abu Dhabi, as the Kiwi didn't impress enough in his first full season in F1.

Hartley had shown some flashes of great driving and racecraft during 2018, but the questions regarding his future started coming halfway through the season. His large amount of DNF's, mechanical or not, put him in a tough spot. Eventually, after the season ended, the Kiwi got the news of him not being part of the team anymore for the upcoming season.

“It was tough, because when I look back now, what I will remember most about it is walking down to the paddock to meet with the media on the Wednesday before the weekend started, and receiving a bunch of questions about my future,” the 29-year-old wrote in a column on The Players' Tribune.

“Here I am, a handful of races into my F1 career, and I’m being asked about the end. 

“The worst part of that day, though, was finding out there was some truth to the rumours. After a few races, there were some people, it appeared, who didn’t want me there.

“I’ll be honest, this was a bit of a shock. After entering F1 with a wealth of experience, two World Endurance championships, a win at Le Mans, and out qualifying my teammate two out of the first three races, it was hard to for me to believe that there was talk of my being replaced so early.”

After struggling early on in the season, his form did pick up in the second half, scoring points on several occasions and even qualifying on top of the midfield in Japan, Honda's home race.

Still, even Hartley himself didn't know what was going to happen until he actually got axed.

“That’s the thing about the politics in F1, it can be a little bit awkward. Everyone sort of walks on eggshells, and there isn’t always clarity.

“So I just did all I could: my job. I out-qualified my teammate and drove to 12th on Sunday night.

“An hour later, I was summoned to a meeting. And a few minutes after that, I was no longer an F1 driver.”