Arvid Lindblad reveals motocross roots ahead of 2026 F1 rookie debut

Arvid Lindblad, who will be joining the Formula 1 grid as the only rookie in 2026, has detailed his journey to the championship and how he started his motorsport career in motocross.

The Briton has swiftly risen through the ranks, entering Italian Formula 4 in 2022. He has since raced in F4 UAE and Euro 4 in 2023, Formula Regional Middle East and Formula 3 in 2024 and Formula Regional Oceania and Formula 2 in 2025.

"It's been my dream to be in F1 since I started this journey when I was five, so having that come true is very special," Lindblad told Motorsport.com in an exclusive interview.

"I don't come from a motorsport background. It was really a passion that I drove myself. When I was three, my dad put me on a motocross bike for the first time because he'd done a tiny bit when he was younger. That didn't last very long, as it was a bit too much for my mum. But then I went karting for the first time when I was five, and I just loved it instantly.

"After the first time, I already knew it was something I wanted to do. My earliest racing memories are from when I was four, when I sat down and watched F1 with my dad. And I remember asking, ‘How do I get there one day? Is it possible? What do you have to do?’"

Arvid Lindblad, Racing Bulls

Photo by: Clive Rose / Formula 1 via Getty Images

He added: "I don't really know why — maybe I was a bit naive — but I just had this inner belief that I'd be there. Not in an arrogant way; it was more like I knew I wanted to be in F1 and I was going to do anything to make that happen. From the moment I started, I never envisioned a future where I wasn't. I always believed that I would be in F1."

Lindblad joined the Red Bull Junior Team as a Red Bull-supported driver in 2021 when he was still in karting, before he became a full member in 2022 at the age of 14. 

During his F2 campaign with Campos Racing, he became the youngest race winner at the Jeddah sprint and the second-youngest polesitter at Barcelona.

Lindblad will join Racing Bulls to drive alongside Liam Lawson in 2026 as Isack Hadjar moves to the seat beside four-time champion Max Verstappen.