Jak Crawford to drive for Aston Martin in Belgium FP1

It is happening again. Aston Martin has officially confirmed that their third driver, Jak Crawford, is set to climb into the cockpit for another Free Practice 1 outing at the upcoming Belgian Grand Prix. This is a massive opportunity for the 21-year-old to continue proving his worth within the top tier of motorsport.

This outing in Belgium marks Crawford’s third FP1 appearance of the 2026 season. He has already logged significant seat time, having driven in Japan—taking over Fernando Alonso's car—before stepping in for Lance Stroll during the session in Austria. Beyond these 2026 runs, Crawford also gained experience with two practice outings for the team toward the end of the 2025 season. This session will serve a crucial purpose for the squad, as it fulfills the third of four mandatory rookie practice requirements that every team must complete this year.

For this specific practice run in Belgium, it will be Fernando Alonso stepping aside to allow Crawford to take the wheel of the AMR26. It is clear that the team is invested in getting him as much track time as possible. Just recently, Crawford was at the Goodwood Festival of Speed, where he put on a show driving the team's 2025 machine, the AMR25, up the famous hillclimb. Furthermore, he has been busy behind the scenes with testing duties for the team, including a Pirelli tyre test held in Barcelona back in June.

Looking back at his progression, Crawford earned this role after a stellar end to his 2025 Formula 2 campaign, where he finished second in the championship standings. During that season with DAMS Lucas Oil, he secured four wins and eight podiums, proving he has the pace to handle high-pressure environments. Now, he faces another test in Belgium, stepping into the AMR26 to show what he can do on the world stage.