Fresh off the back of securing enough points to secure an FIA Super Licence, Arvid Lindblad took part in a private test at Imola this week.

The young British driver took part in his first proper Formula 1 outing at Imola this week, with Racing Bulls fielding their junior driver for a test using the 2023 AT04.

Arvid Lindblad completes TPC at Imola

Under Testing of Previous Cars (TPC) rules, Racing Bulls ran Arvid Lindblad for an outing in a two-year-old AT04 this week.

The 17-year-old recently secured enough points through his results in junior categories to enable him to secure an FIA Super Licence, as he secured the Formula Regional Oceania championship in New Zealand to take himself over the 40-point requirement.

All F1 Grand Prix drivers are required to have a Super Licence to race, but Lindblad will need one of two things to happen in order to formalise his licence.

The FIA still currently requires drivers to turn 18 years old to hold a Super Licence, meaning Lindblad will have to wait until his birthday in August, or Red Bull can apply for special dispensation – the FIA relaxed the rules somewhat in this regard last year, allowing teams to apply for such dispensation on the grounds of age assuming that the performance criteria are met.

It’s not yet been decided whether Red Bull will apply for this dispensation, but the option of having Lindblad as a driver in rotation as a reserve driver for its two Formula 1 teams for the second half of this season is a realistic one.

To that end, Lindblad was set loose in the AT04 – the car raced by Racing Bulls under its previous iteration as AlphaTauri in 2023 – for a TPC run alongside the team’s shakedown filming day with the brand-new VCARB02 at Imola.

It was his first proper outing on a racetrack in a Formula 1 car, following on from his first run in a promotional event at a Red Bull Showrun in Houston last month – driving a VCARB-liveried 2012 RB7.

Lindblad is understood to have impressed senior management at Racing Bulls and Red Bull during the outing, adding further weight to the existing acknowledgement from Red Bull boss Christian Horner and team advisor Helmut Marko of the junior driver’s potential ahead of his season in Formula 2 this year.

For now, there’s no immediate way into either Red Bull team’s driver line-up. With Max Verstappen and Liam Lawson at Red Bull Racing, the VCARB squad will field Yuki Tsunoda and rookie driver Isack Hadjar.

More on the FIA’s F1 Super Licence

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With Lawson unproven as a front-runner, Tsunoda can’t be disregarded as still potentially being a teammate for Verstappen at some point if the Kiwi driver fails to impress, while movement for either Tsunoda or Hadjar would thus open the door for Lindblad to step up.

There’s also some element of succession which Red Bull needs to keep in mind. While Verstappen remains under contract until the end of F1 2028, the acknowledgement of performance clauses by Marko regarding Verstappen’s deal with the team does leave the door open for potential movement in the future if Red Bull fails to deliver competitive machinery.

Towards the end of last season, Marko confirmed the intention for Lindblad to take part in “several” TPC outings, saying, “I think in the past, if I compare with [Jack] Doohan, or with [Oscar] Piastri, or also with [Oliver] Bearman, they had a lot of tests in the two-year-old version Formula 1 car.

“And we want… For example, Liam Lawson didn’t have this opportunity, and also, [Isack] Hadjar, to a certain amount, didn’t have this opportunity,” he told the Inside Line F1 podcast.

“And this we will change for Arvid that he, if he makes a very good season in Formula 2, that he can go with good experience into Formula 1 in 2026, maybe.

“It’s a great pleasure and enjoyment to work with Max, but Max won’t drive forever.

“Especially not as long as Alonso or Hamilton are doing.

“And the junior team prospect [sic] is to find new talents. And we are not looking for a new Max. We’re looking for a new champion.

“I think the next one which looks really promising is Arvid Lindblad.”

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