Aston Martin has announced that it has opted to run reserve driver Felipe Drugovich on the final day of pre-season testing in Bahrain.
Drugovich will take part in the morning segment of Saturday's session while Fernando Alonso will conclude the team's test in the afternoon.
Aston Martin is still monitoring Lance Stroll's recovery from the cycling incident suffered by the Canadian last weekend in which he injured his hand and wrist, which forced him to pull out of this week's three-day test.
The team qualified Stroll's mishap as "minor" but has not offered any information about the place or circumstances of the 24-year-old's crash.
Aston is expected to make a final call early next week on Stroll's presence in next weekend's Bahrain Grand Prix.
Our driver line-up for day three of #F1Testing will be as follows.
AM - @FelipeDrugovich
PM - @alo_oficial pic.twitter.com/gtJF6BWhyb— Aston Martin Aramco Cognizant F1 Team (@AstonMartinF1) February 24, 2023
Oddly, the team has assigned Drugovich to Saturday's morning session, which means that the Brazilian - should he substitute for Stroll next week - will have not experienced Bahrain's track under the late-day lower temperature conditions that will be in force on race day at Sakhir.
It's unclear if this should be interpreted as a positive sign for Stroll's chances of recouping his seat.
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