Aston Martin announce driver swap for F1 season finale

Aston Martin's young driver Jak Crawford will be given an opportunity in F1 machinery at the season finale in Abu Dhabi where he will take to the wheel on two occasions.

The American driver will step up as the team's third driver in 2026, a role previously held by Brazilian Felipe Drugovich, following an impressive stint in his third season in Formula 2 this year.

Crawford currently sits second the F2 drivers' standings, picking up four race wins across a hotly contested season and has just two rounds to in Lusail and Yas Marina to close the gap to championship leader Leonardo Fornaroli - with 19 points separating the pair.

The 20-year-old has plenty of experience in Aston Martin F1 machinery since joining their driver development programme in 2024, completing over 2,100km in their cars while also undertaking extensive simulator work.

Crawford's presence at the team has also helped develop their 2025 challenger and the 2026 car, which will be subject to entirely new regulations next season.

Now, Aston Martin have announced that Crawford will drive for the team during FP1 at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix in a few weeks time, and complete the young driver test at Yas Marina.

Crawford replaces Stroll at F1 Abu Dhabi GP

F1's young driver test takes place at the end of each season, two days after the finale in Abu Dhabi where teams give one car to a driver with less than two races worth of experience, and another to a more experienced driver for tyre testing.

At the young driver test in 2025 and during FP1, Crawford will replace Canadian driver Lance Stroll in the AMR25 as he gets the chance to show his bosses his skill and capability under the pressure of an F1 session.

Crawford took part in FP1 for Aston Martin at the Mexican GP in October, finishing the session P19 and nearly a whole second behind team-mate Fernando Alonso

Speaking on the opportunity in Abu Dhabi, Crawford said: "I'm thrilled to get back behind the wheel of the AMR25 for the second time this season.

"I've spent a lot of time in the simulator at the AMR Technology Campus this year, and being able to translate that work onto the track is incredibly rewarding.

"Mexico was a huge learning experience for me and I'm looking forward to continuing that development in both the FP1 session and the young driver test."

Aston Martin team principal Andy Cowell was supportive of Crawford's outing, and added: "It's fantastic to see Jak back in the car so soon after Mexico.

"Building mileage in the car and maintaining momentum is exactly what we aim for in developing our young drivers.

"This session in Abu Dhabi will be an important step as he prepares for his new role as Third Driver next year, and we're excited to continue supporting his growth."

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