Alpine Reserve Driver Paul Aron will make his free practice debut at the upcoming British Grand Prix weekend with Kick Sauber after the rival teams came to an agreement to share his driving services.
The Estonian 21-year-old, who competed in F2 last season, is not racing competitively this year, with his focus currently on helping Alpine with simulator work as they try and claw their way back up the standings from P10 in the Championship.
Alpine entered the 2025 F1 season with plenty of driving talent in reserve. While Ryo Hirakawa soon departed for Haas, the Enstone-based squad still have Jack Doohan alongside Aron – the Australian had started the year in a full-time race seat but was swapped out in favour of Franco Colapinto ahead of the Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix.
The agreement Alpine have reached with Kick Sauber will release Aron for two FP1 sessions this season, with every team having to give up four FP1 sessions across the year for a ‘Friday’ driver, unless they are running a rookie in one of their cars.
Aron will don the black and green of Kick Sauber at Silverstone this weekend, and also at the Hungaroring later this summer. Apart from that, he remains an Alpine driver and will take part in three further FP1 sessions for the French team with dates to be confirmed in due course.
“I am very pleased to be given the opportunity to have valuable track time in Formula 1, so thanks to BWT Alpine Formula One Team for coming to this arrangement,” Aron said.
“It is no secret that my desire is to one day race full-time in Formula 1 so any chance to be on track in a competitive environment is an important stepping stone.
“While I continue to focus on my development with Alpine, I do look forward to the two sessions with Kick Sauber and giving my maximum effort to them at Silverstone and Budapest.”
Kick Sauber only need to give up two FP1 sessions this season, as they are running a designated rookie in their other car in Gabriel Bortoleto. As such, Aron will replace Nico Hulkenberg at Silverstone and in Budapest.
“It is in our interests to maximise any driving opportunities for our young talent, so it is good to have an agreement with Sauber for Paul to drive in Free Practice 1 in Silverstone and Budapest,” added Flavio Briatore, Alpine’s Executive Advisor.
“We are seeing varied success from last year’s Formula 2 drivers this year up and down the grid, and Paul was a front runner in that category, so this is an opportunity for him and the team to continue his progress and to give him valuable track time.”
Aron finished third in last year’s F2 Championship, behind Bortoleto and Isack Hadjar – both of whom are impressing in their first full season as F1 drivers.
While teams have often released drivers for these sorts of duties in the past, what makes this agreement rare is the fact that Kick Sauber and Alpine are battling each other in the Championship, Kick Sauber lying ninth in the standings just ahead of Alpine.
