Daruvala to make F1 test debut with McLaren

India’s Jehan Daruvala will get his first taste of driving a Formula 1 car this week. He’ll be participating in a test session with McLaren at the Silverstone circuit, which will host the F1 British GP from July 1-3.

Daruvala is currently third overall in the F2 championship. The F1 test marks an important step in his aim to break into F1 and become only the third Indian to race in the championship.

• This will be Daruvala’s first outing in an F1 car
• Will drive a 2021 McLaren F1 car for the test

Daruvala to test 2021 McLaren F1 car

Daruvala will be driving McLaren’s 2021 car, the MCL35M, for the test session. F1’s new sporting regulations now allow teams to privately test cars as recent as the 2021 design. Daruvala’s test outing is part of McLaren’s Testing of Previous Cars (TPC) programme to evaluate young talent for the future. IndyCar race winner Colton Herta is also part of this same programme.

Having scored five podium finishes in six rounds so far, Daruvala is third overall in the F2 championship. He’s also the highest-placed of Red Bull’s five junior drivers. As Autocar India explained earlier, Sergio Perez’s recent Red Bull contract extension limits the number of F1 seats open next year. But it looks like there are a lot more opportunities for 2024.

Given just how limited F1 testing opportunities are, Daruvala is hoping that bagging this McLaren F1 test will put him on the radar should any opportunities open up. “My goal is to get a seat in 2023, but the likelihood of seats opening up [in F1] is really small. I want to finish off this F2 season very well, put myself out there for a seat in F1. Hopefully, I do enough that my name is out there to get a seat in the future,” Daruvala said.

The 2021 car that Daruvala will be testing is a very different beast when compared to the current-gen 2022 F1 cars. But it will yet give the 23-year-old a great opportunity to familiarise himself with how F1 teams operate, the switches on the car, driving requirements and so on. He’s already spent some time in a simulator in the build-up to this test session.

“The 2021 car is probably one of the fastest cars ever in F1. In the end, the main goal for this test is for me to learn,” explains Daruvala. “I’ve never driven an F1 car before and it’s tempting to go flat out from the beginning, but we have a programme to run through. I have to learn the car and its characteristics and from there I can crack on and really find its limits.”

Daruvala still part of Red Bull junior programme

Daruvala has reiterated that he’s still very much part of the Red Bull junior programme, which he joined in 2020. “I’ve obviously had to take permission and they have given me the freedom to go and test an F1 car,” he says.

“Being part of the Red Bull team, they are really happy for me to get this opportunity and McLaren had it and they gave it to us. At the end of the day, it’s my dream to drive an F1 car and to get it with a team like McLaren who have won many world championships, it’s definitely something I would love to do and I’ve taken the opportunity with both hands.”

Daruvala: Prefer F1 reserve role over other championships

When asked if he was looking at perhaps driving in other championships, Daruvala said he’d prefer to pick up a reserve role in F1, much like what reigning F2 champion Oscar Piastri is doing with Alpine.

“If I have a reserve role for next year with the possibility of a lot more seats opening up for 2024, then I’ll take it. I don’t think it’s that easy to get a full-time drive for the championship next year, so I think my sole focus is still trying to get into F1,” he added.

Also see:

F2: Daruvala second in Azerbaijan GP sprint; Safety Car derails shot at victory