Yesterday and today the McLaren team conducted private tests in Barcelona as part of its driver training program – Rio Hirakawa and Pato O’Ward drove the MCL35, the car of 2021. But it wasn’t just them.
For the 29-year-old Japanese driver, a two-time world endurance champion, it was his first experience in a Formula 1 car and important as it was revealed in September that he would serve as one of McLaren’s reserve drivers next year. .
The team did not provide details on the progress of the tests, but only mentioned the fact of Rio’s participation in the tests. And on Friday he was replaced by Pato O’Ward, a fast Mexican who drives for Arrow McLaren in the IndyCar Series and another reserve for the team from Woking.
But the most interesting thing is that Zach Brown also rode the MCL35 around the Catalan ring today. However, McLaren Racing’s executive director promised this in an interview about a month ago.
He regularly drives Formula 1 vehicles from previous years from his collection in historic car races, but this was the first time he tested such a ‘new’ example on the road, and they say he did quite well. It is clear that he did not set himself any sporting goals, but he got an adrenaline rush and will probably talk about this experience.
Source: F1 News
I am Christopher Clyde, an experienced journalist and content writer with a passion for sports. I have been writing about Formula 1 news for the past five years and am currently employed as an author at athletistic.com, one of the top sports websites in the US.
