Who is Felipe Drugovich? Aston Martin F1 reserve driver is in line to replace Lance Stroll
F1
Felipe Drugovich could be making his F1 race debut should Lance Stroll not recover in time for the Canadian GP. Get to know everything about the Brazilian's career here
Drugovich is ready to give up on Le Mans to race in F1
After years of persistence as Aston Martin’s reserve driver, Felipe Drugovich could suddenly find himself on the cusp of a long-awaited Formula 1 race debut.
The opportunity comes amid uncertainty over Lance Stroll‘s recovery from a recurring wrist injury, the Canadian facing a race against time to be ready in time for his home race next week.
Drugovich is scheduled to take part in the Le Mans 24 Hours with Cadillac, and Aston Martin is yet to announce its plans or Stroll’s conditions, but the Brazilian appears to be in pole position should the Canadian be unable to race.
Here we dive into Drugovich’s career.
Karting and single-seaters
Drugovich was born in 2000 into a family with deep motorsport roots: his uncles Sérgio Drugovich and Oswaldo Drugovich Jr were both racing drivers, achieving success in the Formula Truck series in Brazil.
Parana-born Drugovich began karting at the age of eight, quickly establishing himself as an up-and-coming talent in the Brazilian karting scene before moving to Europe to progress his career.
Drugovich’s transition to single-seater racing came in 2016 with Neuhauser Racing in Germany’s ADAC Formula 4 championship, where he secured a podium in his rookie season.
A young Drugovich in 2017
ADAC
The following year, he joined Van Amersfoort Racing and went on to win seven races and finish third in the championship standings, narrowly missing out on the title due to technical issues late in the season, suffering two retirements in the final two rounds.
He also competed in the Italian F4 and the MRF Challenge, winning the title in the latter’s 2017-18 edition.
2018 proved to be a breakthrough year for Drugovich, as he joined RP Motorsport in the Euroformula Open Championship, which he dominated with a massive 14 wins out of 16 races, clinching the title with two rounds to spare.
Also in 2018, the Brazilian added the Spanish F3 and MRF Challenge Formula 2000 titles to his resume, underlining his status as one of the most promising talents outside Formula 1.
In 2019, Drugovich stepped up to the FIA Formula 3 Championship with Carlin, but that year proved to be a disappointment as the Brazilian scored only eight points and finished 16th in the standings.
That year, the FIA F3 series included drivers such as Robert Shwartzman, Yuki Tsunoda and Liam Lawson, who all finished ahead of Drugovich.
F2 spell
Despite the disappointment of 2019, Drugovich found the financial support to move up to Formula 2 with MP Motorsport in 2020.
In the first round of the season at the Red Bull Ring, Drugovich scored his first F2 win in the sprint race. He added further victories in Barcelona and Bahrain to finish ninth in the standings in his rookie season.
For 2021, Drugovich switched to Virtuosi Racing, but his second year in F2 didn’t yield the results he hoped for.
Drugovish took the F2 title in his third year in the series
Getty Images
In a season dominated by future McLaren F1 driver Oscar Piastri, Drugovich finished eighth without any victories to his name.
The following year, however, represented a breakthrough for the Brazilian driver, who stayed in F2, reuniting with MP Motorsport.
Drugovich dominated the series that year, scoring five wins, including a rare double victory in both the feature and the sprint races in Barcelona.
He secured the title with three rounds to go and finished over 100 points ahead of second-placed Théo Pourchaire. That F2 season included future F1 drivers Liam Lawson, Logan Sargeant and Jack Doohan.
F1 hopes
Despite dominating Formula 2 in 2022, Drugovich failed to secure a Formula 1 race seat for 2023, joining the Aston Martin F1 Driver Development Programme and being named the team’s reserve driver.
Drugovich has plenty of experience in the Aston Martin
Grand Prix Photo
He made his official Formula 1 debut in the first free practice session at the 2022 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix and participated in multiple testing and practice sessions throughout 2023 and 2024.
In 2023, the Brazilian came close to making his grand prix racing debut when Stroll got injured ahead of pre-season testing.
With Lance Stroll's participation in the Canadian Grand Prix uncertain, Aston Martin faces several options for a potential stand-in driver
By
Pablo Elizalde
Drugovich replaced the Canadian in testing, but Stroll made his return in time for the season-opening race, denying the Brazilian a chance to take part in an F1 race.
In 2025, Drugovich kept his reserve driver role at Aston Martin but has also returned to racing in sports cars, competing in the 24 Hours of Daytona in a Whelen Cadillac.
The Brazilian is scheduled to race in the Le Mans 24 Hours with the same team, but has said Formula 1 would take precedence should he have to replace Stroll after the Canadian’s wrist surgery.
Drugovich is also expected to make his Formula E race debut later this year, deputising for Nyck de Vries at Mahindra Racing as the Dutch driver competes in the 6 Hours of São Paulo in July.
Drugovich has previous experience of Formula E machinery, having taken part in testing in 2023 and 2024.
