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Sainz missing from first free practice at Zandvoort for Dutch Grand Prix

Sainz will miss FP1 at Zandvoort this weekend

23 August 2023 at 08:39
Last update 23 August 2023 at 09:01
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  • Kada Sarkozi
  • Editor

Carlos Sainz will not step into the SF23 during the first free practice next weekend. The Spaniard will be at Zandvoort as usual, but will hand over his car to Ferrari junior Robert Shwartzman. The 23-year-old driver will be in action under the 'rookie rule'.

From 2022, Formula 1 teams are obliged to offer at least two first free practice sessions to a rookie. So this usually involves young talents who have the chance to get into an F1 car. A young driver must meet the simple requirement of driving less than two Grands Prix.

Shwartzman in action twice

Ferrari is using the Dutch Grand Prix to put a junior in the car for the first time. Shwartzman will thus take a seat in Sainz's car and later in the season the driver, who has raced under the Israeli flag since 2022, will make another appearance during a VT1, Frederic Vasseur confirmed in a media interview that included GPblog . Most likely, Shwartzman will then 'borrow' Charles Leclerc's car for 60 minutes.

Shwartzman finished second in the 2021 Formula 2 championship. He is a test driver with the Italian formation. Arthur Leclerc and Oliver Bearman, both racing in F2, will have to wait another year for their official debut in an F1 car.