Verstappen Sits Out FP1 at Monza: Iwasa Takes the Wheel

Max Verstappen will start his Italian Grand Prix weekend on the sidelines, but any sense of drama around his absence at Monza can be parked immediately. The world champion is not injured, not ill, and not suspended. He is simply stepping aside for one session.

Ayumu Iwasa, one of Red Bull’s reserve and development drivers, will take the wheel of the RB22 in FP1 at the Temple of Speed, giving the Japanese driver a rare and valuable taste of front-running machinery.

Then Verstappen gets his car back. And the real business begins.

Iwasa’s Chance in the Spotlight

Iwasa, 25, has been handed a coveted Friday outing as part of Formula 1’s rookie running requirements. Teams must field rookie drivers in a set number of free practice sessions over the season, and Red Bull has chosen Monza’s FP1 to tick one of those boxes.

It’s a low-risk play from the team. The first practice hour is often about systems checks, baseline setup work, and gentle exploration of the track limits. Perfect territory for a newcomer to log laps, learn procedures, and feel the car at speed without the pressure of a qualifying simulation hanging over every run.

For Iwasa, it’s an opportunity with weight. A factory Red Bull drive, even for 60 minutes on a Friday, is a statement of trust and a live audition rolled into one.

Verstappen’s Weekend Remains Intact

For Verstappen, the change is little more than a planned interruption. He knew in advance he would hand over his car for FP1 and return for FP2, with ample time to tune the RB22 for qualifying and the race.

No rhythm lost. No competitive handicap. Just a different way to start a Grand Prix weekend.

The Dutchman arrives at Monza with something to prove after his crash at the Dutch Grand Prix. The result stung, and he has already urged Red Bull to stay realistic about their pace, even though the team won here last season. The hunger is still sharp, the standards still unforgiving.

Missing FP1 will not blunt that edge.

More Red Bull Changes in the Garage

There is another shuffle in the Red Bull camp at Monza, and this one runs deeper than a rookie run.

Hadjar remains out as he continues to recover from a wrist injury, which keeps him sidelined again. That opens the door once more for Liam Lawson, who will be back alongside Verstappen at Red Bull for the weekend.

The knock-on effect continues down the grid: Yuki Tsunoda will step in for Lawson at Racing Bulls, extending the chain of substitutions triggered by Hadjar’s absence.

So the Red Bull family arrives in Italy with a slightly altered look. A rookie in FP1. A stand-in continuing his run. A regular shuffling teams for the weekend.

And at the center of it all, Verstappen, briefly out of the cockpit on Friday morning, then back in the car with a point to prove at one of Formula 1’s most unforgiving stages.