Sebastien Buemi has revealed he passed up an opportunity to return to Formula 1 seven years ago.

The endurance racing and Formula E champion, who raced in F1 between 2009 and 2011, had a shot at a comeback in the wake of Daniel Ricciardo’s departure from Red Bull in 2018.

Buemi raced for Red Bull’s second team when it was known as Toro Rosso. Red Bull team principal Christian Horner and motorsport consultant Helmut Marko offered him a chance to return when the team reorganised its driver line-up after Ricciardo announced hisd plans to leave.

However Buemi turned them down. “We had a conversation with Christian Horner and Dr Marko in 2018,” he told e-Formel.de. “But that didn’t really make sense for me because I had good contracts in Formula E and with Toyota.

“I would have had the chance to drive for Toro Rosso again. But for me it was better to continue on my path than to return to Formula 1.”

Buemi joined Toyota’s World Endurance Championship team immediately after leaving F1. He went on to win the WEC title twice and took four victories in the Le Mans 24 Hours. He also joined Renault’s Formula E team and won the 2015-16 championship.

He remained a reserve driver for Red Bull after losing his F1 drive. “I believe Red Bull and Dr Marko did a lot for me,” he said. “For that, I am very grateful.

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Of course, I didn’t really understand the decision at the time. I would have loved to drive for Red Bull. But it wasn’t my decision, and I had to deal with it.

“It was very difficult back then. You dedicate your whole life to racing in Formula 1. These decisions are not easy to understand, but I remained at Red Bull as a reserve driver at the time. You just have to accept it and immediately start thinking about your future.”

Following Ricciardo’s departure, Red Bull promoted Pierre Gasly to its top team and recalled its former junior driver Alexander Albon to drive for Toro Rosso. Albon withdrew from a deal to drive for Nissan in Formula E, where he would have been Buemi’s team mate, in order to take up Red Bull’s offer.

Just 12 races into the 2019 season, Red Bull relegated Gasly to Toro Rosso and promoted Albon to its top team.

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