Audi hand F3 runner-up Freddie Slater F1 practice debut at Mexico City and Sao Paulo

Audi have given 18-year-old Freddie Slater his first taste of a Formula 1 race weekend. The British driver, runner-up in this year's FIA Formula 3 championship, will drive the Audi R26 in first practice at the Mexico City Grand Prix on Friday 30 October and the Sao Paulo Grand Prix on Friday 6 November, the team confirmed on 22 October.

Who is Freddie Slater?

Slater became the first officially announced member of Audi's Driver Development Programme in January 2026. He finished second in Formula 3 with Trident, roughly 14 points behind champion Ugo Ugochukwu after taking the fight to the final round. His season included one Feature Race win, in Budapest in July, three pole positions and eight podiums, and he was the highest-placed rookie in the standings.

Before F3, he won both the Italian Formula 4 championship and the Formula Regional European Championship. He will step up to Formula 2 with Invicta Racing in 2027.

Who makes way

Gabriel Bortoleto and Nico Hulkenberg will each hand over their car for one FP1 session, according to Grande Premio. Their race seats are unaffected and Audi's line-up for the rest of the season is unchanged.

The outings also help Audi meet the regulation requiring teams to run a rookie in four FP1 sessions each season. Audi had already used two of those with Paul Aron, Alpine's development driver, so Slater covers the remaining two.

What Audi said

Allan McNish, Audi's racing director and head of the young driver programme, said the appearances would give Slater valuable experience of a full F1 weekend. Slater described driving an F1 car at a Grand Prix as "a big moment for me", per Motorsport Week.

Team chief Mattia Binotto had already marked Slater out as a potential future F1 candidate during the Azerbaijan weekend in September, praising his improved tyre management and consistency in the second half of the season.

A busy triple-header for juniors

Slater will not be the only junior getting FP1 mileage in the coming weeks. Motorsport Week reports that McLaren will also run F2 driver Leonardo Fornaroli in FP1 at both the Mexico and Brazil rounds. The triple-header that starts in Austin this weekend therefore doubles as a showcase for the next generation, with Haas having already confirmed F2 championship leader Rafael Camara as a race driver for 2027.

For Audi, which took over Sauber at the start of 2026, the move signals that its own junior pipeline is starting to feed into the senior team's programme.

Key takeaways

• Freddie Slater, 18, makes his F1 practice debut for Audi in Mexico City on 30 October and Sao Paulo on 6 November.
• Bortoleto and Hulkenberg each give up one FP1 session; the race line-up is unchanged.
• Slater was F3 runner-up in 2026 and joins Invicta Racing in F2 for 2027.
• The sessions complete Audi's four mandatory rookie FP1 outings, after two by Paul Aron.

FAQ

When will Freddie Slater drive in F1 practice? In FP1 at the Mexico City Grand Prix on Friday 30 October and at the Sao Paulo Grand Prix on Friday 6 November.

Is Slater replacing Bortoleto or Hulkenberg as a race driver? No. Each will sit out one practice session only, and both remain Audi's race drivers.

What did Slater achieve in Formula 3? He finished runner-up with Trident in 2026, with one Feature Race win, three poles and eight podiums, and was the best-placed rookie.

Sources: Grande Premio, Motorsport Week, GPfans, PlanetF1