“Hopefully he replaces your son” – F1 Twitter reacts after F2 Champion Felipe Drugovich is announced as Aston Martin F1’s reserve driver
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Felipe Drugovich and Lawrence Stroll
It has been a great couple of days for Brazilian star Felipe Drugovich. This weekend in Monza, he sealed his title victory in Formula 2 after the sprint race, and he currently leads second-placed Théo Pourchaire by 77 points. It’s certainly been a great year for Drugovich with MP Motorsport, and now he is reaping the rewards.
There had been much reported interested in the Brazilian – Haas were said to be looking into him, and earlier this month, it also emerged that he was potentially a candidate for a reserve driver seat at Aston Martin. Now, these talks have materialized and he has been announced by the team as a reserve driver.
Aston Martin’s blog-post announcing Drugovich read: “Aston Martin Aramco Cognizant Formula One™ Team (AMF1) is delighted to announced that newly crowned Formula 2 champion Felipe Drugovich has become the first member of its Driver Development Programme.” and also mentioned that he signed the contract with Aston Martin on the day he was crowned champion.
As mentioned before, the deal sees him become a reserve driver for the team, and he will drive one FP1 session this year: “The team’s intention is for him to drive in FP1 at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix (substituting for Lance Stroll) and to also take part in November’s young driver test at the Yas Marina Circuit.”
Also Read: F2 Driver Felipe Drugovich in line for a potential Aston Martin seat
Felipe Drugovich hopes this will give him an opportunity in F1
Like most reserve drivers, Drugovich will undertake a test programme with the 2021 Aston Martin car and attend selected Grands Prix with the team. In the announcement, Drugovich said: “Becoming a member of the AMF1 Driver Development Programme is a fantastic opportunity for me.”
F1 is the highest tier of Motorsport, and Drugovich wants to be competing with the best: “I see my role at AMF1 as giving me all the tools to take that crucial next step [after F2]. For me, 2023 will be a learning curve: I will be working with the F1 team, but my primary goal is to learn and develop as a driver. I hope that will give me an opportunity to race in Formula One in the future.”
Drugovich is a highly rated talent, and his fans were very excited to see him the next step. His team, MP Motorsport, with whom he won the F2 title also congratulated him.
There were also a few (more than a few) replies aimed at Lance Stroll, son of Lawrence Stroll, who is part owner of Aston Martin.
Drugovich will be getting an FP1 run in Abu Dhabi, as per the announcement, but fans are hoping he will be able to test the car in FP1 in Brazil instead.
Both Lawrence Stroll and team principal Mike Krack praised Drugovich, with Stroll remarking that it would be a great validation of their faith if he was to get into F1, and in doing so, join the ‘pantheon’ of other Brazilian greats such as Emerson Fittipaldi and Ayrton Senna.
Also Read: Formula 2 leader Felipe Drugovich in talks with Aston Martin
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Aniket Tripathi
(1002 Articles Published)