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Leonardo Fornaroli gets his second grand prix weekend appearance of 2026 at the Hungaroring, stepping into Oscar Piastri's McLaren for FP1 at the Hungarian Grand Prix. The 21-year-old reigning F2 champion previously drove Lando Norris's MCL40 in Barcelona, and now moves into the sister car as McLaren arrives in Budapest with a significant upgrade package.
The timing matters. McLaren sit third in the championship standings on 195 points, trailing Mercedes by 163 and Ferrari by 90. The team has identified Mercedes as the primary target but acknowledges the Ferrari SF-26 has shown stronger cornering pace. Every development point counts at this stage of the season.
Team principal Andrea Stella has confirmed McLaren is actively exploring grid opportunities for Fornaroli beyond the reserve role, with the Italian linked to the second Haas seat. That subplot runs hot this weekend — Haas are also sitting out their regular driver in FP1, with Oliver Bearman making way for Toyota protege Ryo Hirakawa.
Completing the rookie triple-header, Alpine reserve Paul Aron takes his third FP1 start of 2026, replacing Franco Colapinto. Aron's previous two outings came on loan at Audi in Barcelona and Austria. F1 regulations require each team to run rookie drivers in four FP1 sessions per season, two per car.