Jak Crawford will make his FP1 debut for Aston Martin and the Mexico City Grand Prix next weekend.
The American joined Aston Martin at the start of last season after leaving the Red Bull junior programme, and has impressed the team in the simulator this year in addition to his Formula 2 championship challenge. The 20-year-old has now been rewarded with a first FP1 appearance in Mexico City, taking over Lance Stroll’s car for his F1 debut on a race weekend.
Team boss Andy Cowell says Crawford has earned this opportunity thanks to his work for the team on the F1 project.
“It’s fantastic to give Jak the opportunity to compete in FP1 in Mexico,” said Cowell. “He has shown real maturity and provided strong technical feedback throughout the year, and these sessions are an important part of the way we develop young talent.
“Jak has had a strong season in Formula 2 and has made significant contributions to the development of both the AMR25 and AMR26. This is a great opportunity for him to continue to make progress and help us collect valuable data.”
Crawford is at the United States Grand Prix this weekend in a supporting role for Aston Martin, but the sprint weekend format prevents teams from running a rookie in FP1 as there is only one practice session.
“I’m excited to be driving the AMR25 next week in Mexico for my first official Formula 1 session,” said Crawford. “I have been working closely with the team all year, so to now take the next step and get track time during a Grand Prix weekend is really exciting. Announcing this in Texas, where I am from, makes it even more special after a busy week with the team and Aramco in Houston.”
Each team must field a rookie driver four times during the year, and with Aston Martin having already completed two thanks to Felipe Dugovich in Bahrain and Hungary, Crawford could get a second outing in Abu Dhabi to end the year.
Crawford becomes the first American driver to take part in an official F1 session since Logan Sargeant last raced for Williams in the 2024 Dutch Grand Prix.
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