Williams hand a British F1 up-and-comer a chance to impress at Bahrain GP

Formula 2 driver Luke Browning will drive for Williams in opening practice for this weekend’s Bahrain Grand Prix.

The 23-year-old will take over Carlos Sainz’s Williams FW47 in FP1 at the Bahrain International Circuit on Friday, 11 January, to fulfill one of Williams’ four mandatory rookie practice requirements.

This would be be the second opportunity for Browning to take part in a grand prix weekend, having previously driven for the Grove-baed team in first practice at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix in December last year.

To prepare for his Bahrain appearance, the British driver took part in a private test in a two-year-old Williams FW45 at Monza last weekend, where he was joined by fellow academy driver Victor Martins.

“Being given another opportunity to drive in a Free Practice session with Williams is a dream come true, and I'm getting more and more confidence each time I drive the car," he said.

"My main aim for FP1 is to get more comfortable with the procedures and environment that come with Formula 1, and to build on my experience from Abu Dhabi last December.

"I’m excited to feel the progression from the FW46 to the FW47 and I feel incredibly grateful to James, Sven and the team at Grove for entrusting me with the car.

"A lot of preparation has gone into this weekend, so thank you to everyone in the Driver Academy for supporting my development so far.”

Browning is currently competing in his first full season in F2, having stepped up to the championship towards the end of last year after finishing third in the 2024 F3 season.

Driving for Hitech, he secured his first F2 podium in the sprint race in Melbourne last month. The feature race was cancelled due to heavy downpour.

Williams sees the Bahrain FP1 appearance as the “next step” in Browning’s development as a driver.

“Luke has made strong progress since his first Formula 2 weekend last year and scored good points in the opening race of the season in Australia," said Sven Smeets, Sporting Director at Williams:

"His previous FP1 experience, participation in our TPC programme, and simulator work have prepared him well for this weekend and we look forward to seeing him take this next step forward in his development.”

Bahrain is seen as an ideal training ground for rookies, with F1 teams already having accumulated enough data at this track during the pre-season testing in February.

Several other teams are fulfilling their mandatory rookie running in Bahrain this weekend, with Mercedes bringing in Frederik Vesti and Aston Martin calling up Felipe Drugovich for FP1.

Martins, who joined Williams’ driver academy last month after splitting with Alpine at the end of 2024, is also expected to drive in a practice session later this year.