Arvid Lindblad opens up on "special moment" he found out he would drive in F1

Racing Bulls rookie Arvid Lindblad has opened up about the "special moment" he found out he would be a Formula 1 driver.

The 18-year-old is the only rookie of the 2026 Formula 1 season and will race alongside Liam Lawson at Red Bull's sister outfit. After Isack Hadjar replaced Yuki Tsunoda at Red Bull for the upcoming season, Lindblad secured the open spot alongside the New Zealander.

"Since becoming a Formula 1 driver… the best thing was just becoming a Formula 1 driver," Lindblad told BBC Sport.

"This is something I've been doing with my dad. I got the news in Qatar when I was with him, so obviously that was a very special moment to share together."

He later shared how his passion for motorsport came from his father's side of the family, explaining that his grandfather and father used to do a "little bit of motocross".

"Unfortunately, they couldn't do it for very long, but he passed that passion down to my dad, who passed it on to me," he added.

"When I was three, my dad got me a motocross bike. To be honest, it didn't last very long. It was a bit too much for my mum to sit a little three-year-old on a motocross bike. So that died out quite quickly.

Arvid Lindblad, Racing Bulls

Photo by: Rudy Carezzevoli / Getty Images

"But then when I was five I went karting for the first time and loved it from the beginning.

"But I'd say a big turning point for me that I remember very well was when I was about four. My dad was sitting on the sofa and had the F1 on and I came and sat down next to him and was watching the race and asking him, 'Is it possible to be there? Could I? How does it work?'

"That was really the moment when I saw the cars and wanted to be there one day and that fuelled the start of the journey."

The 2026 F1 season will begin with the Australian Grand Prix from 6-8 March.