Aston Martin have confirmed Jak Crawford will replace Lance Stroll for Free Practice One at the Austrian Grand Prix, with the American third driver set to take over the AMR26 at the Red Bull Ring.
The team said Crawford will drive Stroll’s car in the opening one-hour session, giving the 21-year-old another official Formula 1 weekend run after his earlier 2026 outing in Japan. The move also helps Aston Martin tick off the second of their four mandated rookie practice appearances this season.
Crawford Gets Another Aston Martin Chance
Crawford arrives in Austria with useful preparation behind him. He has just completed a Pirelli tyre test with Aston Martin in Barcelona, and the Red Bull Ring is familiar ground from his Formula 2 and Formula 3 campaigns.
The team framed the run as part of his continuing development programme, rather than any change to their race line-up. Crawford has now built more than 3,800 kilometres in Formula 1 machinery and remains one of the most active young drivers outside the current grand prix grid.
Aston Martin confirmed the plan in their Austrian Grand Prix FP1 announcement, with Crawford saying another race-weekend opportunity in the AMR26 is valuable after extensive simulator work.
For Aston Martin, the session is about usable feedback as much as rookie compliance. For Crawford, it is another chance to prove he can translate test mileage and simulator preparation into a clean, productive grand prix weekend session.
