Daniil Vyacheslavovich Kvyat (; born 26 April 1994) is a Russian professional racing driver racing for Prema Racing in the 2023 FIA World Endurance Championship. Kvyat competed in Formula One between 2014–2017 and 2019–2020. He became the second Formula One driver from Russia and is the most successful of the four Russian drivers to date, with three podiums.
He was runner-up at the 2012 Eurocup Formula Renault 2.0, and a champion in 2012 Formula Renault 2.0 Alps Series and 2013 GP3 Series. He made his debut in Formula One as a Toro Rosso driver in finishing 15th in the World Championship. He then moved on to Red Bull Racing to partner Daniel Ricciardo for the 2015 season. He scored his first Formula One podium finish at the 2015 Hungarian Grand Prix, finishing second behind Sebastian Vettel. In his first season with Red Bull Racing, Kvyat finished 7th in the Drivers' Championship, ahead of his teammate. He started the 2016 season with Red Bull Racing, scoring his second podium, finishing third at the 2016 Chinese Grand Prix. However, following a controversial collision during the opening lap of his home race in Sochi, Kvyat was demoted to Toro Rosso ahead of the 2016 Spanish Grand Prix, where he finished the season and was retained by the team for the next season. Although consistently demonstrating solid qualifying performances in 2017, his season was plagued by various problems, including several retirements in races where he could have scored points. After the 2017 United States Grand Prix, Kvyat and Red Bull parted ways, effectively terminating his contract. Kvyat spent 2018 as a development driver for Scuderia Ferrari, before being re-signed by Toro Rosso for the season. At the 2019 German Grand Prix Kvyat claimed the third podium of his career by finishing third; this was also Scuderia Toro Rosso's second podium finish after they won the 2008 Italian Grand Prix with Sebastian Vettel.
In 2021 he was a reserve driver for the Alpine F1 Team.
In 2022, Kvyat was entered to compete in the FIA World Endurance Championship for G-Drive Racing, but this team withdrew on 6 March in response to conditions introduced by the FIA following the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine. He called the restrictions "unfair and discriminatory". Kvyat drove at the Indianapolis Road Course race in the NASCAR Cup Series for Team Hezeberg on July 31.
Early life
Daniil Kvyat was born in Ufa, Bashkortostan, Russia, on 26 April 1994 to Vyacheslav and Zulfiya Kvyat. Vyacheslav Kvyat worked for Bashneft, initially as a mechanic at the Novo-Ufan refinery, but rose through the ranks to become the financial director of the export division until 1996. Later he branched out and worked with other energy companies, ending up as CFO of West Siberian Energy. At the same time he stood for election as a Deputy in the Bashkortostan state parliament.
Career
Karting (2005–2009) In January 2005, Kvyat made his professional debut in motorsports winning his very first race in Sochi. During the 2005 and 2006 seasons, Kvyat participated in local events, including the Russian karting championship and cup as well as in the occasional races in Italy. Consistently demonstrating strong performances, he later moved to Italy to fully concentrate on racing in one of the most competitive environments. Kvyat's first professional team in Italy was Franco Pellegrini's crew.
During the winter of 2007, Kvyat's family moved to Italy to support his commitment demonstrated by his strong results. The young driver's parents stayed with him alternately, and he started education in Italian school, continuing to race in local tournaments. Before the start of the 2008 season, Kvyat, who had already proved himself in the Italian karting scene, signed a contract with the Zanardi factory team, led by well-known manager Dino Chiesa. Kvyat moved to the KF3 junior category and became a participant of the prestigious World Series Karting series. However, the Russian driver and Zanardi's partnership did not result in any success. He achieved European Championship qualification but Kvyat switched teams just before the championships started, to join privateers from Morsicani Racing, who used an FA Kart chassis. In their very first race, the new partnership produced an excellent result: Kvyat, who had tested the new kart of the new team just a couple of days before the start of the championship, not only made it to the finals but was fighting for the win.