Unlike the past three seasons, this week’s Formula 1 Austrian Grand Prix is a standard race weekend and not an F1 Sprint race. That means teams and drivers have the typical allotment of three practice sessions ahead of Saturday’s qualifying session.
Alex Dunne to drive in FP1 at the F1 Austrian Grand Prix for McLaren
McLaren development driver Alex Dunne will drive in place of Lando Norris during FP1 at the Austrian Grand Prix
Photo by James Sutton - Formula 1/Formula Motorsport Limited via Getty Images
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That means there are opportunities for teams to use FP1 as a driver development session for a “rookie” driver, and McLaren announced on Monday they will do just that.
Alex Dunne, a member of the team’s drive development program, will participate in FP1 on Friday, replacing Lando Norris. The 19-year-old made his single-seater debut during the 2021 motorsport season in the Spanish F4 Championship and finished third in his first race. During the 2022 campaign, Dunne won 16 times, competing in the British, UAE, and Italian F2 Championships. He even secured the British F4 Drivers’ title.
This season is Dunne’s first in F2, driving for Rodin Motorsport. The young driver has a pair of Feature Race wins (the first coming in Bahrain and the second at Imola) and currently sits atop the F2 Drivers’ Championship standings.
“It’s an amazing opportunity to be able to drive during FP1 in Austria. I’m really looking forward to getting laps in behind the wheel of the MCL39 and supporting the team with the setup for the race weekend ahead,” said Dunne in the announcement.
“I’ve been preparing well for the sessions, taking part in Testing of Previous Cars tests in the MCL60 and spending time on the simulator, which has been a fantastic learning experience. Thank you to Zak [Brown], Andrea [Stella] and Alessandro [Alunni Bravi] for their faith in me. It’s a great step within my development with the McLaren Driver Development Programme, and I’m really excited to join the team trackside.”
“It’s great to be able to give Alex the opportunity to run in Free Practice 1, and for him to get valuable time behind the wheel of a Formula 1 car as part of his development. The team are pleased to be working with him more closely, and for his support across the weekend, where he will be providing useful feedback to help with the car’s set-up,” said McLaren Team Principal Andrea Stella. “The rookie sessions are fantastic for seeing the talent of tomorrow and enabling that rare chance to get time in a current car, so we look forward to seeing him on track.”
In addition to his F2 duties, Dunne serves as a Reserve and Development Driver for the NEOM McLaren Formula E Team.
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