FIA may approve Lindblad’s F1 debut next week

Arvid Lindblad could soon find himself on the Formula 1 grid.

Over the winter, Red Bull sent the 17-year-old British-Swedish driver to compete in New Zealand, helping him secure the final points needed to qualify for an F1 super license.

The last hurdle is Lindblad’s age. Under FIA regulations, drivers must be 18 to compete in Formula 1 unless granted special exemption.

"Arvid Lindblad has the points for the super license, but he doesn't turn 18 until September," Red Bull advisor Dr Helmut Marko said recently. "That's why we're currently applying to the FIA for an exemption, which (Kimi) Antonelli got."

According to De Telegraaf, the FIA’s World Motor Sport Council is expected to review the exemption request next Tuesday.

The Dutch newspaper also suggests that Red Bull’s urgency stems from a possible suspension looming over Max Verstappen.

If Verstappen picks up one more penalty point next weekend in Canada, he could be banned from the following race at the Red Bull Ring in Austria.

"He can't commit any offenses over the next two race weekends," Marko confirmed to Speed Week.

"And of course, he'll be told not to do anything rash.

It would be a catastrophe if he couldn't start in Austria. But we don't expect that to happen, because it's certainly not the case that Max does something wrong in every race.

"After Austria, the first penalty points will be removed."

If Verstappen is sidelined for a race, the most likely option would see Racing Bulls driver Isack Hadjar promoted to the main team, with Lindblad stepping into the Racing Bulls seat.

"Arvid Lindblad has had a strong performance in Formula 2," said Marko. "He won the main race (in Barcelona), thus celebrating his second victory of his rookie season.

"If he continues like this, we can expect him to move up to Formula 1. He may only be 17 years old, but he's also a tremendous talent."

Meanwhile, Marko also addressed speculation around Yuki Tsunoda’s future, clarifying that the Japanese driver is expected to stay at Red Bull Racing through the end of the season.

"Tsunoda has scored one point in the last three races, and that's obviously not satisfactory," said the Austrian.

"But he needs more time, and he'll get it. We expect him to be in the car until the end of the season."