Lawson to return for AlphaTauri in Mexican GP practice · RaceFans

AlphaTauri will become the third team to complete the mandated handover of two practice sessions to aspiring F1 drivers this season as Liam Lawson has been confirmed for this weekend’s race in Mexico.

A new-for-2022 rule requires each car on the grid to be driven by a driver with fewer than three grand prix starts to their name in at least one practice session, meaning two instances of this at each team, in an effort to create more Formula 1 opportunities for young drivers.

Formula 2 driver and Red Bull junior Lawson drove Pierre Gasly’s car at the Belgian Grand Prix, and had already been confirmed as having a second run in the AlphaTauri AT03 later in the season. It has now been announced he will take the place of Yuki Tsunoda in the first practice session in Mexico City this weekend.

Lawson is currently seventh in the F2 championship with one round to go, having won three races so far in his second season.

Two other junior drivers will be on-track on Friday. Lawson’s F2 rival Jack Doohan will make his F1 race event debut for Alpine. Haas reserve driver Pietro Fittipaldi, who qualifies as a junior despite racing for the team twice in 2020, will also return.

Alpine, Aston Martin, Haas and McLaren have all scheduled their final second practice session handover to take place at the season-ending Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. Ferrari have said Robert Shwartzman will be driving at one of the last three grands prix. There has been no word from Mercedes or Red Bull on how they will complete the practice session requirement with each still needing to run one practice driver.

Although Aston Martin’s junior driver Felipe Drugovich will not get his chance to drive the team’s 2022 F1 car until Abu Dhabi, he is being immersed into the race team through the final American leg of the season, starting with last weekend’s United States Grand Prix.

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F1 teams’ junior driver practice schedules