Crawford Impresses in Mandatory Rookie FP1 Outing at Suzuka

Crawford Steps Up

American rookie Jak Crawford made his FP1 debut at Suzuka, taking over Fernando Alonso's Aston Martin AMR26 for the mandatory young driver session. With Alonso attending the birth of his first child, the timing allowed Aston Martin to fulfil their rookie running obligation.

Crawford finished P22 with a best lap of 1:36.362 on hard tyres, 1.068 seconds behind team-mate Lance Stroll who posted a 1:35.294 in P21. At one of the most demanding circuits on the calendar, a gap of just over a second to an experienced team-mate was a solid first outing.

Background

Crawford serves as Aston Martin's reserve and development driver and has been working closely with the team's simulator programme ahead of the 2026 season.

Alonso Returns

Fernando Alonso returned to the cockpit from FP2 onwards after missing FP1 for the birth of his first child. The two-time champion qualified P21 with a 1:32.646 — nearly four seconds off pole — as the team struggled for pace at Suzuka. Missing the crucial FP1 setup session clearly hurt Alonso's ability to dial in the AMR26 for qualifying trim.