Alfa Romeo has announced that Theo Pourchaire will drive for the team in FP1 at 2022 US Grand Prix.
Pourchaire’s first proper F1 outing on a race weekend has come after a strong F2 season, where he sits second with one round left after taking three wins across the campaign, which had been his priority in 2022 meaning that FP1 opportunities in F1 were limited until now.
Alfa Romeo have confirmed that Pourchaire will replace Valtteri Bottas for the FP1 session in Austin, Texas, USA.
The FP1 outing won’t be Pourchaire’s first time in the Alfa Romeo after he drove for the team in a test at Hungaroring, Budapest, last year but the Frenchman is “thrilled” to get back into a F1 car.
On what it means to be participating in a Friday Practice session on a Grand Prix weekend, Pourchaire said: “It feels like a dream coming true, and I want to thank Alfa Romeo F1 Team ORLEN for putting their trust in me and granting me this amazing opportunity:
“I am looking forward to being on track, and I will make sure to get the most out of it and to do my best to support the team as they prepare for the United States Grand Prix.”
Alfa Romeo Team Principal, Frederic Vasseur added that Pourchaire had delivered “great performances” in F2 this season, as well as throughout his time as a member of Sauber Academy since 2019 from which he has made “constant progress and development” both on and off track.
On the decision to hand the 19 year-old his first competitive F1 session in FP1 at US GP, Vasseur said: “We are delighted to give him his first Free Practice outing next week:
“it’s a well-deserved opportunity, and I’m confident he will once again impress us with his performances, as he will help the team gather valuable data ahead of the United States Grand Prix.”
Pourchaire won’t be the only driver to replace a regular driver in FP1 in Austin, Texas, as Logan Sargeant and Antonio Giovinazzi will participate in the session for Williams and Haas respectively.
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