I don’t think being a reserve driver is unreasonable and they tend to hang around the paddock anyways.

I think Nico Hulkenberg is a perfect example of why it can pay to keep in contact with F1 teams when everyone else says your career is over. That isn’t a skill comparison, just an example of someone playing bench warmer after their career in F1 was “over” who still made a comeback.

F1 has certainly seen more ridiculous things.