Another Japanese driver will get the spotlight in this weekend's Japanese Grand Prix

One of the protagonists of the Japanese Grand Prix this weekend will, coincidentally, be a Japanese driver: Yuki Tsunoda, who has just been moved by Red Bull to their main team, swapping places with Liam Lawson, who is "relegated" to Racing Bulls, Red Bull's secondary team. Tsunoda, 24, has quite a lot of experience at Racing Bulls since 2021 (back when it was named AlphaTauri, later renamed RB Honda), with 92 races and 94 career points.

However, another Japanese Formula 1 driver will also get some of the spotlight this weekend. We're talking about Ryō Hirakawa, BWT Alpine reserve driver, who will be given the chance of racing during free practice 1 session on Friday, the team announced.

Harakawa, 31, works as a reserve driver for Alpine's drivers Jack Doohan and Pierre Gasly. He previously worked for McLaren during the 2024 season, and made his debut in the 2024 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, at a practice session. He hasn't taken part in main F1 races, however, but his focus is elsewhere, at Toyota Gazoo Racing for the FIA World Endurance Championship, where he won the championship titles in 2022 and 2023, as well as 2022's 24 Hours of Le Mans.

Harakawa's presence at the FP1 session at the Japanese Grand Prix was already announced back in January, and the driver said in a team's statement that he was delighted of racing before local fans in Japan.