Lando Norris suffers from food poisoning, De Vries on the case
Affected by food poisoning, Lando Norris left his media activities prematurely and returned to his hotel. McLaren has called in Nyck de Vries to replace the young British driver if he is unable to take part in the first free practice session.
Champion of Formula 2 in 2019 and then of Formula E in 2021, Nyck de Vries has raced for a total of 5 different teams since the beginning of the season. The Dutch driver has seized opportunities in Formula 1 by participating in Free Practice 1 during the Spanish Grand Prix alongside Williams, in France with Mercedes, and in Italy with Aston Martin.
It is by replacing Alexander Albon, who fell victim to appendicitis at Williams, that De Vries scored his first points in Formula 1 during the Monza Grand Prix. He managed to start in eighth position and finished ninth in the race, outperforming his teammate Nicolas Latifi. His promising performances have gained unanimous approval and convinced the AlphaTauri team. In 2023, he will be part of the Italian line-up alongside Yuki Tsunoda.
McLaren remains confident in the idea of Lando Norris returning. After giving a day off to their driver who went to rest at his hotel in Sao Paulo, the team hopes to not have to resort to De Vries. Nevertheless, De Vries will still be ready to step in at any time.
Meet at 12:30 local time, 4:30 p.m. French time, for the first practice sessions!
