Lawson set for F1 practice debut at Belgian GP

Red Bull junior Liam Lawson is set to make his F1 debut in Friday's first practice session at the Belgian Grand Prix at Spa later this month.

Lawson, a two-time winner with Carlin in the FIA Formula 2 Championship this season, has been handed an outing with AlphaTauri although the Faenza-based squad has yet to confirm which driver the Kiwi will replace.

"We plan to run Liam Lawson in FP1 in Spa," said AlphaTauri team boss Franz Tost last weekend in Hungary.

Read also: Williams to run Sargeant in US Grand Prix first practice

AlphaTauri has yet to define it's driver line-up for 2023. While Pierre Gasly is committed to the Italian outfit until the end of 2023, the future of his current teammate Yuki Tsunoda is still up in the air.

Slowly but surely, F1 teams are adding young drivers to their Friday schedule, in accordance with this year's sporting rules that mandate that each team allocate at least two practice sessions to a young driver.

Red Bull Racing ran Juri Vips in FP1 in Barcelona while Williams, which gave track time to Mercedes EQ works driver Nyck de Vries in Spain, announced on Tuesday that junior charger Logan Sargeant will make his F1 debut on home turf at the US Grand Prix in October.

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Phillip van Osten

Motor racing was a backdrop from the outset in Phillip van Osten's life. Born in Southern California, Phillip grew up with the sights and sounds of fast cars thanks to his father, Dick van Osten, an editor and writer for Auto Speed and Sport and Motor Trend. Phillip's passion for racing grew even more when his family moved to Europe and he became acquainted with the extraordinary world of Grand Prix racing. He was an early contributor to the monthly French F1i Magazine, often providing a historic or business perspective on Formula 1's affairs. In 2012, he co-authored along with fellow journalist Pierre Van Vliet the English-language adaptation of a limited edition book devoted to the great Belgian driver Jacky Ickx. He also authored "The American Legacy in Formula 1", a book which recounts the trials and tribulations of American drivers in Grand Prix racing. Phillip is also a commentator for Belgian broadcaster Be.TV for the US Indycar series.