Max Verstappen is one of six Formula 1 drivers including a few big-name stars who will not be driving in first practice at this weekend’s Bahrain Grand Prix. Teams up and down the grid are using this event as an opportunity to field some less experienced drivers during that session.
F1 rules force teams to give rookie drivers the chance to take part in a certain number of FP1 sessions per season. For this 2025 campaign, the previous number was doubled and now so a team must field a rookie at least four times per season – twice in each car.
One of those was confirmed earlier this week along with news of another driver changing teams hours after the Japanese Grand Prix. Haas announced the signing of Ryo Hirakawa as their new reserve on Monday and said he would take over Oliver Bearman’s car for FP1 in Bahrain this weekend.
Hirakawa has already taken part in one practice session so far this season. He was behind the wheel of an Alpine at Suzuka last weekend in his first an only outing during his three month spell with the team before the decision to quit for Haas.
Ferrari are another outfit who have already confirmed their plans to let Charles Leclerc sit out first practice. Driving his car will be Formula 2 racer Dino Beganovic, who will be making his debut in an official F1 timed session.
Verstappen will be joining fellow F1 front-runner Leclerc on the sidelines during the earlier of the two sessions to be held on Friday. In his place will be Ayumu Iwasa, who has represented junior squad Racing Bulls in F1 previously but never the main Red Bull team.
George Russell is another big name who will be absent from that first hour of running in Bahrain. Given the keys to his Mercedes will be one of their reserve drivers, Frederik Vesti, who alongside his duties with the Silver Arrows is scheduled to race in sportscar championship IMSA this year.
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Forgotten Aston Martin reserve and former Formula 2 champion Felipe Drugovich will also get an outing, replacing Fernando Alonso in FP1. And Carlos Sainz will be the other racer making way for a more inexperienced star, paving the way for Britain’s Luke Browning to get some more F1 experience with Williams.
Drivers must meet certain criteria if they are to count as rookies for the purposes of the rule forcing teams to switch out their drivers at least four times per year. There is no age limit, though, evidenced by 31-year-old Hirakawa meeting those criteria.
Most crucial is the amount of experience a driver has in F1. Any competitor who has raced more than twice in F1 will be deemed to no longer be a rookie. So Bearman, for example, does not count for Haas this year because of his three stand-in appearances last term.
But even a driver who holds a race seat this year will count, meaning those teams who have racers who did not make their debut until this season benefit. For example, Kimi Antonelli’s first two races for Mercedes counted as the two rookie runs in his car, meaning Mercedes only have to switch Russell out twice this year to comply with the rules.
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