The Brazilian driver, who conquered Formula 2 this past weekend at Monza, kicks off Aston Martin’s driver development program and will be its reserve driver, making his debut in Free Practice 1 in Abu Dhabi this year. He had never before been linked to a Formula 1 team.
For the second consecutive season, the Formula 2 champion will not have a seat in the following season of the Formula 1 World Championship. In this 2022 it was up to Oscar Piastri to wait his turn, who worked as a test driver for Alpine before the saga of negotiations that has ended with his signing as McLaren’s owner for 2023. Now , the sanbenito of patience falls on Philip Drugovichwhose path to Formula 1 will also have to have its particular previous ‘pit stop’.
The Brazilian pilot, who was proclaimed champion of the training category on Saturday with three races in advancehas been announced this Monday as Aston Martin’s new reserve driver for the 2023 season, and will be the first member of the British team’s driver development programme. At 22 years old, this is Drugovich’s first known association with a Formula 1 teamsince he had not been part of any academy or pilot program to date.
Drugovich will debut with Aston Martin in FP1 at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix in November
Aston Martin assures that its program “has been designed together with the engineers and managers of Aston Martin with the intention of provide a path for young drivers to reach Formula 1“. As part of the program, the team plans to field him in the first free practice of this year’s Abu Dhabi Grand Prix In place of Lance Stroll, he will take part in the post-event young driver tests, and will carry out an “extensive” test program in last season’s Aston Martin AMR21.
In his third season in Formula 2, Drugovich has signed some convincing results, with four wins, four pole positions and six podium finishes in the 13 main races held, in addition to a fifth win in a sprint race and a total of nine podium finishes in 26 races. His great consistency, which has allowed him finished 18 times in the top fivehas been key in beating opponents with higher caliber a priori like Theo Pourchaire or Liam Lawson, and thus giving the once modest MP Motorsport its first title at this level.
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No alternative programs in a “learning year”
Despite this, interest from Formula 1 teams had been low to dateas this program reserves his best option to remain in the orbit of the Great Circus: “It is a fantastic opportunity for me,” says Drugovich in the official statement, “and I think that my role at Aston Martin will give me all the tools I need to take the crucial next step. For me, 2023 will be a year of learning; I will work with the team, but my main goal is to learn and develop as a driver. I hope that will give me an opportunity to drive in Formula 1 in the future.”
At the moment, there is no indication that Drugovich will be able to compete in another championship to stay active, and most likely he will opt for a situation similar to that of Piastri, limiting himself to his test program and traveling with the team to the Grand Prix. Interestingly, both will have done so in a formation in which Fernando Alonso was a member, who will play the 2023 season with Aston Martin. Previously, Drugovich had been linked to the IndyCar Series as a possible replacement for Álex Palou in the Ganassi team, but the driver himself He has denied his jump to the Americas on two occasions.
Lawrence Stroll shakes hands with his new pupil at Aston Martin.
An unusual and not without work path to F1
Drugovich began competing in 2016 in Germany, which at the time had the best Formula 4 championship in Europe, and in his second year lost the title in the last round in a three-way duel with Jüri Vips and Marcus Armstrong, rivals in F2 this year. In 2018 he did not jump to European F3 and opted for the most affordable EuroFormula Open, where he dominated the championship with 14 wins in 16 races. The jump from him to the new FIA F3 in 2019, however, came with a Carlin team at very low hours.
Despite this, Drugovich was the leader of the British formation in 16th position adding 8 of his 14 points, more than another great 2022 opponent like Logan Sargeant. From there he moved on to Formula 2, where his ninth place finish in 2020 equaled MP Motorsport’s best finish in a season. In 2021 he started as a contender for the title at the hands of Virtuosi, but could only be eighth in the final table without victories. His return to the MP fold has brought an unexpected improvement in his fortunes, and access to Formula 1 that, for now, only serves to warm up the bench.