McLaren managing director Jonathan Neale believes that there is a high level of pressure on rookie drivers when they enter the Formula 1 circuit.
Toro Rosso announced yesterday that 19-year-old Daniil Kvyat will line up alongside Jean-Eric Vergne next season.
Neale believes that moving from GP3/Formula 3 level to a Grand Prix seat would be a challenging transition for any youngster.
"Stepping up from GP3 into F1 is still a very big step, with the weight of expectation," Autosport.com quotes Neale as saying. "In particular with the transition in technology from this year to next year.
"It has been done successfully historically by exceptional candidates, but Formula 1 is a very high-pressure environment and very unforgiving."
The teenage Russian will take the place of Daniel Ricciardo, who has been named as Red Bull's new driver due to the imminent departure of Mark Webber.