McLaren has confirmed that Stoffel Vandoorne will leave the Formula 1 team at the end of the year.
The Belgian driver has endured a poor run of form in 2018 after being out-qualified by team-mate Fernando Alonso at every event so far this season, only collecting eight points after 14 races compared to the Spaniard's 44.
Vandoorne linked up with the team in 2013 after being signed to its young driver programme; he then made his Formula 1 debut as he subbed in for Alonso at the 2016 Bahrain Grand Prix, where he put in a solid performance to score the team's first point of the season.
Carlos Sainz Jr. has already been confirmed at McLaren for 2019 in place of the retiring Alonso and the team previously signalled its intention to announce his team-mate by the end of the month.
McLaren CEO Zak Brown said: "We’re immensely thankful for Stoffel’s dedication, hard work and commitment during his time at McLaren. He’s a talented racing driver with an incredible list of accolades in his junior career.
"We’re proud to have played a part in his break into Formula 1, from his role as Test Driver to his fantastic points-scoring debut in Bahrain in 2016.
"It’s clear we haven’t provided Stoffel with the tools to show his true talent, but throughout our relationship, he’s proved to be a fantastic team player. His work ethic is impressive, he has a great reputation within the team and we’ve really enjoyed working with him.
"Of course, we would have loved to achieve more success during our time together, but that doesn’t detract from the fact that he will always be a part of the McLaren family of grand prix drivers.
"We wish Stoffel all the best in whatever direction he chooses to take next in his career, and we’ll be supporting him all the way. We will announce our full driver line-up for the 2019 season in due course."
Vandoorne has been linked with the Sauber team to rejoin his former ART boss Frederic Vasseur, who helped him to dominate the 2015 GP2 Championship, but the Belgian's future remains clouded due to a very complex driver market.
“I’m very grateful to McLaren for investing their faith in me over the past five years. I joined McLaren as a young driver and have since seen my career progress within the team from Test and Development Driver to Reserve Driver and then to full-time race driver.
“While we haven’t achieved the success we’d all hoped for, I’ve really enjoyed the past two seasons racing for McLaren and I have a great relationship with everyone in the team.
“My time at McLaren has been a great chapter in my career and I’m thankful for the opportunity the team," added Vandoorne.
"Shaikh Mohammed bin Essa Al Khalifa and Mansour Ojjeh have given me to gain valuable Formula 1 experience and develop as a driver. I intend to give it my all for the remaining seven races of this season and will announce my plans for next season in due course."
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