Formula 1 Italian GP
Oscar Piastri to sit out F1 Italian GP FP1
Piastri will temporarily vacate his cockpit at Monza, with McLaren junior Dunne taking part in the opening free practice session
Ben Vinel
Published: Sep 4, 2025, 8:33 AM
Copy link
Share on Viber
Oscar Piastri, McLaren
Photo by: Kym Illman (Getty Images)
Formula 1 championship leader Oscar Piastri will sit out Free Practice 1 at the Italian Grand Prix, where he will be replaced by McLaren junior Alex Dunne.
Current F1 sporting regulations demand that teams run rookies – drivers who have not competed in more than two grands prix – on race weekends on four occasions over the season. This typically happens in Free Practice 1 on well-known tracks, where the regular driver theoretically won’t lose out too much in terms of preparation for the remainder of the event.
Dunne previously replaced Lando Norris in FP1 at the Austrian GP, taking fourth place with a 0.069s deficit to Piastri. A member of McLaren’s driver development programme since May 2024, he will now drive the team’s other car.
“My first one in Austria was an extremely special day for me, but I think to do it again in Monza, which is a track that’s so historic and prestigious, is definitely going to put a very big smile on my face,” the Irishman said.
Alex Dunne won two F2 feature races with Rodin Motorsport
Photo by: Formula Motorsport Ltd
“Hopefully I can build and improve on what was already a strong outing in Austria, and help Lando and Oscar as much as possible going into their weekend.”
A British F4 champion and GB3 runner-up, Dunne has been a frontrunner in every championship he has taken part in full-time – except for a winless F3 campaign last year.
Now participating in his maiden F2 campaign with Rodin, the 19-year-old is one of five drivers in the title hunt, having already won two feature races. A third Sunday victory escaped him amid a commanding display on a wet Spa-Francorchamps track, where a 10-second penalty for a start procedure infringement dropped him to ninth.
Aron replaces Colapinto
Flavio Briatore, Executive Advisor of Alpine F1 talks with Paul Aron of Estonia.
Photo by: Sam Bagnall / Sutton Images via Getty Images
Dunne won’t be the only young driver in action during that FP1 session, with Paul Aron taking over Franco Colapinto’s car at Alpine.
Having taken third place in F2 last year, the 21-year-old Estonian has no racing programme this year and focuses on his role as a reserve driver with the Enstone-based squad; he was loaned out to Sauber for practice sessions at Silverstone and the Hungaroring earlier this summer, and previously drove Alpine's current F1 car in a Pirelli test following the Hungarian GP.
Alpine has clarified that it opted not to declare Jack Doohan’s Melbourne entry as a rookie outing “to keep it equitable with two driver changes for both cars”. Ryo Hirakawa drove the Australian’s car at Suzuka, so the team still needs Pierre Gasly to sit out two sessions later on.
Read Also:
We want your opinion!
What would you like to see on Motorsport.com?
Take our 5 minute survey.
- The Motorsport.com Team
Read and post comments
Read also :
Share Or Save This Story
Copy link
Share on Viber
Previous article Andrea Kimi Antonelli's error-filled F1 debut season is exactly what he needs
Next article Jacques Villeneuve pours cold water on Ferrari’s Monza hopes: “Won’t cut it”
Top Comments
There are no comments at the moment. Would you like to write one?
View More & Comment
More from
Ben Vinel
Penalty drops Oscar Piastri out of F1 Mexico GP points
Formula 1
Formula 1
Mexican GP
Penalty drops Oscar Piastri out of F1 Mexico GP points
Fred Vasseur reacts to Lewis Hamilton, Charles Leclerc clash: “It’s a matter of respect”
Formula 1
Formula 1
Mexican GP
Fred Vasseur reacts to Lewis Hamilton, Charles Leclerc clash: “It’s a matter of respect”
More from
McLaren
"Two steps forward, one step back" – Oscar Piastri explains the route out of McLaren's car woes
Formula 1
Formula 1
Mexican GP
"Two steps forward, one step back" – Oscar Piastri explains the route out of McLaren's car woes
Why McLaren gave team order to Oscar Piastri in F1 US GP
Formula 1
Formula 1
United States GP
Why McLaren gave team order to Oscar Piastri in F1 US GP
Latest news
Dodge announces return to NASCAR Cup Series in 2027
NASCAR Cup
NAS NASCAR Cup 1 h
Dodge announces return to NASCAR Cup Series in 2027
Justin Allgaier confirms he will return for 2027 NASCAR O'Reilly season
NASCAR O'Reilly
NOAP NASCAR O'Reilly
Martinsville II
1 h
Justin Allgaier confirms he will return for 2027 NASCAR O'Reilly season
NASCAR Cup Homestead finale to feature full field of 40 cars
NASCAR Cup
NAS NASCAR Cup
Martinsville II
4 h
NASCAR Cup Homestead finale to feature full field of 40 cars
Data reveals severity of Carson Hocevar's brake-check: "There's no denying it"
NASCAR Cup
NAS NASCAR Cup
Martinsville II
5 h
Data reveals severity of Carson Hocevar's brake-check: "There's no denying it"
Feature
Discover prime content
Subscribe and access Motorsport.com with your ad-blocker.
From Formula 1 to MotoGP we report straight from the paddock because we love our sport, just like you. In order to keep delivering our expert journalism, our website uses advertising. Still, we want to give you the opportunity to enjoy an ad-free and tracker-free website and to continue using your adblocker.
You have 2 options:
- Become a subscriber.
- Disable your adblocker.
Subscribe now Already subscribed? Sign in here
Already disabled your adblocker?
Reload page
Manage Alerts
Subscribe