Lando Norris’ pursuit of the Formula 1 championship will be disrupted today as he will miss first practice for the Austrian Grand Prix.
The McLaren driver has arrived at the Red Bull Ring off the back of colliding with teammate and championship rival Oscar Piastri in Canada.
The crash, which Norris took full responsibility for, knocked him out of the grand prix and leaves him 22 points behind Piastri in the standings as we near the halfway point of the season.
Victory in Austria would go a long way to restoring the Brit’s confidence and could even see him retake lead of the championship if Piastri suffers a poor result.
But Norris, as well as Sir Lewis Hamilton’s Ferrari teammate Charles Leclerc, will play no part in FP1 on Friday.
Why is Lando Norris not driving in Austrian Grand Prix practice?
As per regulations, each F1 team is obliged to run a rookie driver in each of their cars in a practice session at two grand prix this season.
McLaren have opted to use Austria for one of these runs, with Norris selected to make way on this occasion for rising star Alex Dunne.
The 19-year-old is currently leading the Formula 2 championship and will be the first Irish driver to take part in an F1 session since Ralph Firman in 2003.
‘It’s an amazing opportunity. I’m really looking forward to getting laps in behind the wheel of the MCL39 and supporting the team with the setup for the race weekend ahead,’ Dunne said.
‘It’s a great step within my development with the McLaren Driver Development Programme, and I’m really excited to join the team trackside.’
Austrian Grand Prix schedule
Friday, June 27
Practice 1 – 12.30pm
Practice 2 – 4pm
Saturday, June 28
Practice 3 – 11.30am
Qualifying – 3pm
Sunday, June 29
Race – 2pm
Ferrari have confirmed that Leclerc will be replaced by Swedish F2 star Dino Beganovic, as was the case at the Bahrain Grand Prix in April.
Norris and Leclerc will be back behind the wheel for the rest of the weekend, starting with the second practice session later today.
Can Max Verstappen still get a race ban at the Austrian Grand Prix?
Following his shocking crash with George Russell in Spain, Max Verstappen is on the verge of a one race ban from Formula 1.
The reigning champion has picked up 11 points on his superlicence in the last 12 months, with just one more needed to earn a suspension.
The Red Bull star avoided trouble in Canada but will need to do so again in Austria or he will be suspended for the British Grand Prix next weekend.
Thankfully for Verstappen, two of his current penalty points expire on Monday, which will lessen his chances of picking up a ban from that point onwards.
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