Which F1 rookies will drive in Barcelona-Catalunya GP first practice as Lewis Hamilton, Kimi Antonelli sit out session

Formula 1 teams are set to unleash their rookie reserve drivers during Friday’s opening practice session at the Barcelona-Catalunya Grand Prix.

After an intense start to the season following the introduction of all-new regulations, a return to the track that hosted the first pre-season test event for the 2026 cars is set to be used by most teams to begin to fulfil their rookie session obligations.

Throughout the 2026 season, each driver is obligated to give up their seat for a rookie during two practice sessions.

The majority of teams have already confirmed they will be running a rookie in Practice One on Friday, live on Sky Sports F1 at 12.30pm.

Mercedes – Fred Vesti

Replacing: Kimi Antonelli

The 24-year-old Dane gets another opportunity having twice appeared for the Silvers Arrows in each of the 2023 and 2025 seasons.

Ferrari – Dino Beganovic

Replacing: Lewis Hamilton

The 22-year-old Swede, who is competing in F2 this year, returns to the Ferrari cockpit after appearing in Bahrain and Austria last year.

McLaren – Leo Fornaroli

Replacing: Lando Norris

Last year’s Formula 2 champion, who preceded that triumph by claiming the Formula 3 championship, will make his F1 practice debut.

Given McLaren’s recent track record of young pick-ups, with the likes of Oscar Piastri and Gabriel Bortoleto, the 21-year-old Italian may attract attention all the way along the pit wall.

Red Bull – Ayumu Iwasa

Replacing: Isack Hadjar

Japan’s Iwasa makes his second practice outing for Red Bull, but has also previously turned out on four occasions for Racing Bulls.

Williams – Luke Browning

Replacing: Alex Albon

Britain’s Browning makes the first of his schedule back-to-back practice appearances, filling in for Albon in Spain before taking over from Carlos Sainz in Austria next time out.

Audi – Paul Aron

Replacing: Nico Hulkenberg

As they did last season, Alpine are loaning out reserve driver Paul Aron to Audi (formerly Sauber) for two practice sessions, first in Barcelona and then also in Austria.

Cadillac – Colton Herta

Replacing: Sergio Perez

Perhaps the rookie with the most eyes on them in Barcelona will be Herta, the man many believe could be F1’s next American driver.

The former IndyCar star has switched to F2 this season, but has yet to produce the sort of performances that might be required to convince Cadillac to give him a permanent chance in future.

Rookie Drivers: Barcelona-Catalunya GP Practice One


Team	Rookie driver	Driver replaced
Mercedes	Fred Vesti	Kimi Antonelli
Ferrari	Dino Beganovic	Lewis Hamilton
McLaren	Leonardo Fornaroli	Lando Norris
Red Bull	Ayumu Iwasa	Isack Hadjar
Williams	Luke Browning	Alex Albon
Audi	Paul Aron	Nico Hulkenberg
Cadillac	Colton Herta	Sergio Perez

As it stands, it appears that Alpine, Racing Bulls, Haas and Aston Martin are running their usual driver pairings for all sessions.

Formula 1 heads straight to Spain for the Barcelona-Catalunya Grand Prix with live coverage on Sky Sports F1 from this Friday. Stream Sky Sports with NOW – no contract, cancel anytime

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