Palou resumes F1 testing for McLaren at Hungaroring · RaceFans

IndyCar points leader Alex Palou is testing for McLaren at the home of the Hungarian Grand Prix today.

Palou drives for McLaren’s rivals Ganassi in IndyCar. The two teams were involved in a legal dispute over his services last year which was resolved with Palou remaining at Ganassi this season while joining McLaren’s new junior driver programme and becoming the team’s F1 reserve driver.

McLaren revealed on social media it is testing at the Hungaroring, which will hold the 11th round of this year’s world championship next month. The team is running its 2021 chassis, the MCL35M.

Palou made his debut in an official F1 race weekend when he drove during the first practice session for
the United States Grand Prix at the Circuit of the Americas last year. McLaren ran him in one of the minimum of two occasions teams are required to field a driver who has made no more than two grand prix starts.

The other opportunity was taken by McLaren IndyCar driver Pato O’Ward at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. O’Ward is another of McLaren’s junior drivers, along with Formula 4 racer Ugo Ugochukwu.

Palou is enjoying a strong run of form in IndyCar, taking pole position for the last three races in a row and winning two of them.

Image: McLaren via Twitter