Aston Martin rookie Jak Crawford to drive FP1 in Austria

American driver Jak Crawford will return to a Formula 1 cockpit next week, taking over Lance Stroll's Aston Martin for the first practice session at the Austrian Grand Prix. The June 26-28 event at the Red Bull Ring will mark Crawford's second official practice outing of the 2026 season and his fourth overall with the team.

The 20-year-old reserve driver will fulfill part of Aston Martin's obligation under F1 sporting regulations, which require each team to run a rookie-defined as a driver with no more than two grand prix starts-in four practice sessions per season. This will be the second of the team's four mandatory rookie sessions, following Crawford's first practice appearance in Japan earlier this year.

Crawford's preparation for the session has been extensive. He recently completed a Pirelli tire test with the team in Barcelona and has built over 3,800 kilometers of running in F1 machinery through testing and simulator work since joining Aston Martin's development program. The Red Bull Ring is a familiar venue for Crawford, who has raced there in Formula 2 and Formula 3 and first tested an Aston Martin F1 car at the circuit in 2024.

In a statement ahead of the session,...