Aston Martin calls up Drugovich as Stroll's replacement for test days

Felipe Drugovich will be in action for Aston Martin during Thursday morning of winter testing in Bahrain. In the afternoon, Fernando Alonso will take the wheel. The team announced this via a press release. Drugovich thus takes over from Lance Stroll, who is unable to test due to injuries.

Earlier, Stroll announced he would not be able to take part in the test days in Bahrain this week. The Canadian suffered minor injuries during a bike training session and is therefore unable to test the new Aston Martin car ahead of the new season.

It has now been announced that Drugovich will take over Stroll's duties. The reigning Formula 2 champion is a reserve driver at Aston Martin this year along with Stoffel Vandoorne. However, Vandoorne is currently in South Africa for the Cape Town ePrix, so Drugovich is the obvious person to take care of the test days. The Thursday will be split between Drugovich and Fernando Alonso. The rest of the days remain to be announced.

Uncertain whether Stroll can start the season

Whether Stroll will be able to drive the first race of the season is currently unclear. The team has said it is assessing the driver's health on a daily basis. Stroll himself has said that the injuries are not serious and that he is focused on just participating in the season's start.

UPDATE: @FelipeDrugovich will attend the Bahrain test to share driving duties with Fernando Alonso. Felipe is scheduled to drive AMR23 on Thursday morning with Fernando taking over in the afternoon.

Schedule for Friday and Saturday to be confirmed. pic.twitter.com/RQK1sREbuo

— Aston Martin Aramco Cognizant F1 Team (@AstonMartinF1) February 21, 2023