Jüri Vips will make its first appearance in a FIA Formula 1 World Championship weekend as he joins the field for the opening free practice session at Circuit Barcelona-Catalonia for Oracle Red Bull Racing.
The Estonian, who will also play the Formula 2 FIA championship this weekend Hitech Grand Prizewill take over from the car normally driven by Sergio Perez for the session, with Red Bull using one of its two mandatory sessions for young drivers in Spain.
The regulations introduced in 2022 mean that each team on the grid will have to run a young or rookie driver in two free practice sessions, with a maximum of two race starts under their belt.
Vips, who has been a Red Bull junior since 2018, has tested Red Bull before and has acted as a reserve driver at times after being granted a Superlicense, but this weekend will be a much different challenge for him as he joins a official weekend session. for the first time.
Vips will be one of three test and reserve drivers to hit the track this weekend, with Williams race already announced that Mercedes-EQ Formula E Team driver Nyck de Vries will run with them instead of Alexander Albonwhile Robert Kubica will make his first appearance of the season with Alfa Romeo F1 Team ORLEN instead of Zhou Guanyu.
Kubica is not eligible for the young driver session due to his extensive experience in Formula 1, which means Alfa Romeo will have to sign another driver in a few sessions later in the season.