Paul Aron to Drive in Alpine F1 Hungarian Grand Prix Practice Session
Estonian driver Paul Aron will take part in Alpine's first free practice at the Hungarian Grand Prix, replacing Franco Colapinto.
Estonian racing driver Paul Aron is set to participate in a Formula One practice session for the Alpine team at this weekend's Hungarian Grand Prix. Alpine confirmed that the 21-year-old will drive in Friday's first free practice at the Hungaroring, replacing Franco Colapinto, as reported by Autosport.ee.
With this, Aron will fulfill Alpine's first mandatory rookie practice session requirement of the season and will get behind the wheel of the A526 for the first time during an official Grand Prix weekend this year. So far, he has been contributing to the team's work primarily from the simulator at its Enstone factory throughout the season.
"I'm really looking forward to getting behind the wheel of the A526. I've spent the entire year working with this car in the simulator at Enstone, and now I'll finally get to drive it on a real track. It will give me valuable experience and the opportunity to get a direct feel for the car," Aron said in a team press release.
The Estonian recalled his strong impression during Alpine's free practice sessions last year and now wants to build on that performance. "Last year, all three of my free practice sessions went very well. I want to build on those experiences and help the team as much as possible over the course of the weekend," he added.
The Hungarian Grand Prix is round 11 of the 2026 Formula One season and the final race before the one-month summer break. Aron has already taken part in two free practice sessions this year with the Audi Formula One team.
The race meet takes place at the famous Hungaroring just outside Budapest, where the first Formula One Grand Prix to take place behind the former Iron Curtain was held 40 years ago. The race weekend runs from Friday to Sunday.
