Renault Formula 1 academy driver Christian Lundgaard will make his GP3 debut at Circuit Paul Ricard with MP Motorsport, replacing Will Palmer at the Dutch outfit.

Lundgaard will race the #23 MP-Dallara machine alongside its regular drivers Dorian Boccolacci and Niko Kari in a one-off agreement.

The 16-year-old Dane is well-known to the brand, being with it throughout his single-seater career to date, winning the SMP and Spanish F4 championships in 2017.

He currently competes in Formula Renault 2.0 Eurocup and NEC, placing second in both championships after eight and two events respectively.

In that series, he took part in two races at the French track in April, finishing fifth and third.

“It’s a very big opportunity for me to be competing in the GP3 Series,” Lundgaard said.

“It’ll be a whole new experience for me, especially driving a car with a lot more horsepower and downforce to what I’m used to.

“I’ll be out there aiming to get the best results possible and trying to learn as much as I can in a short space of time.

“I know the circuit quite well from racing in the FR Eurocup there this year, so I can take that as a small advantage.”

Previous MP driver Palmer made his GP3 bow at the first round of 2018 at Barcelona, finishing 18th and 13th in the feature and sprint contests.

The son and brother of ex-F1 drivers, Jonathan and Jolyon, currently places 17th in the drivers’ standings.