The Formula 1 Japanese Grand Prix starts on Friday with free practice 1, but it officially begins with the media day on Thursday. However, Aston Martin's driver Fernando Alonso will miss it because of the birth of his first son.
Aston Martin reported on Wednesday that the 44-year-old driver would be "arriving slightly later this weekend for personal family reasons. All is well and he will be at the track in time for Friday." It has been known that his partner Melissa Jiménez has just given birth to their first son, confirmed by BBC, as Alonso likes to keep his personal life as private as possible, something difficult as both are public figures (Jiménez is sports reporter in DAZN). It is Alonso's first child, and Jiménez fourth; she had three with Betis footballer Marc Bartra.
Aston Martin announced earlier this week that Jak Crawford would replace him in FP1 on Friday, due to the rule of allowing reserve drivers to start in two Grand Prix per year.