Kimi Antonelli will be replaced for the first practice session at the Hungarian Grand Prix as part of Formula 1's rookie driver mandate, while Red Bull have been inundated with driver enquiries amid uncertainty over Max Verstappen's future.
Antonelli to sit out FP1
Championship leader Antonelli will hand his Mercedes over to reserve driver Frederik Vesti for FP1 at the Hungaroring. The Dane previously drove Antonelli's car in FP1 at the Barcelona-Catalunya Grand Prix earlier this season. This means the Italian will not be obliged to give up his car for any further sessions this year. In contrast, Mercedes teammate George Russell has not yet been replaced for a practice session, so he will have to hand over his car twice after the summer break.
Other drivers sitting out FP1 include McLaren's Oscar Piastri, with Leonardo Fornaroli taking his place. Paul Aron (Alpine), Ryo Hirakawa (Haas) and Colton Herta (Cadillac) will replace Franco Colapinto, Oliver Bearman and Valtteri Bottas respectively.
Red Bull fielding driver interest
Red Bull have been contacted by several drivers interested in joining the team amid uncertainty over Max Verstappen's future. The four-time world champion has a clause in his contract allowing him to leave at the end of this season, and he has been linked with Mercedes and McLaren. Despite his frustration with the car's pace and regulations, he is more likely to move for 2028.
Team principal Laurent Mekies told Sky Sports F1: "Look, it is working in both directions. It is completely natural that Max gets a call from everyone, because he is the best driver in the world. And equally, if you are a top team, you are going to get calls from many of these good drivers around as well. So that's natural. Is it a distraction for us? Not really."
Mekies added: "Our full focus is on getting that car as fast as it can [be] and then you will keep your best driver in the world. And we also see the massive growth of Isack [Hadjar] alongside Max, and that for us is the ideal pairing and we try to make sure we can keep that pairing."
