Jak Crawford to drive Aston Martin in Austrian Grand Prix FP\P1 session

The outing at the Red Bull Ring will be Crawford's fourth FP1 appearance for the Silverstone-based team and his second of the 2026 season. It also fulfils the second of Aston Martin's four required rookie practice sessions this year.

The American arrives in Austria fresh from completing a Pirelli tyre test for the team in Barcelona and will return to a circuit where he has enjoyed success throughout his junior career, winning races in both Formula 2 and Formula 3.

The session also marks another milestone in Crawford's development programme with Aston Martin. It comes nearly 2 years after he first drove a Formula 1 car for the team during a test of the AMR22 at the Red Bull Ring in June 2024.

Since then, Crawford has become a key part of Aston Martin's driver development structure, accumulating more than 3,800 kilometres of Formula 1 running while supporting the team through testing and simulator work.

Crawford said: "It's great to have another opportunity to drive the AMR26 during a race weekend. Austria is a circuit I know well and it's quite special to be returning to the Red Bull Ring with the team, almost two years after my first test in an Aston Martin F1 car.

"I've spent a lot of time in the simulator this season supporting the team and recently completed the tyre test in Barcelona, so I'm looking forward to applying that work on track. Every opportunity in a Formula 1 car is valuable, and I'll be focused on delivering useful feedback and maximising the session for the team."

Aston Martin Chief Trackside Officer Mike Krack added: "Jak continues to play an important role as Third Driver and this FP1 session is another valuable step in that process. He has been heavily involved in our simulator programme throughout the season.

"He recently completed productive running during the Pirelli tyre test in Barcelona. Austria provides another opportunity for us to evaluate his progress in a race weekend environment while gathering valuable data for the team," added Krack.

Aston Martin have only scored a point so far this 2026 Formula 1 season wiith the AMR26 proving to be a big disappointment for the Adrian Newey led team.