Up-and-coming talent Leonardo Fornaroli: Jerez test in the 2025 McLaren

A packed schedule for promising young F1 driver Leonardo Fornaroli: straight after the race weekend at Interlagos in Brazil, the young Italian headed to Spain. Fornaroli took part in a two-day TPC test at the Jerez circuit – a test involving an older F1 car (TPC stands for ‘Testing of Previous Cars’, i.e. testing previous car models). It was his seventh and therefore final TPC test of the year. In Jerez, Fornaroli drove the MCL39 – the 2025 car, the double world champion! With the MCL39, McLaren clinched the Constructors’ Championship and Lando Norris won the Drivers’ Championship.

F1-Nachwuchshoffnung Leonardo Fornaroli

Foto: McLaren F1 Team

Fornaroli also hard at work in Brazil during the F1 weekend

Fornaroli had also been hard at work in Brazil just a few days earlier: as part of the mandatory rookie sessions for the teams, the 21-year-old drove in FP1 at Interlagos. It was his fourth Friday session in the current Formula 1 car (he had previously driven in Barcelona, Budapest and Mexico City). Each session earns points towards his Super Licence – and provides vital practice for potential roles as a reserve driver at McLaren.

Leonardo Fornaroli in Jerez

Foto: McLaren F1 Team

Fornaroli completed a total of 58 laps at the Circuito de Jerez. That’s 254 kilometres. It was drizzling at the start of his morning session, so he was out on intermediate tyres for the first time on a slightly wet track. After a brief interruption, however, he was also able to complete a few laps on dry tyres (soft).

Nyck de Vries beim McLaren-Test

Foto: McLaren F1 Team

Fornaroli wasn’t alone at the Jerez test. A familiar face from F1 joined him for the test day: Nyck de Vries. The Formula E world champion has competed in a total of eleven F1 Grands Prix, ten of them for AlphaTauri (now known as Racing Bulls) at the start of the 2023 season. De Vries completed 69 laps in Jerez, equivalent to 306 kilometres – pretty much exactly the distance of a current F1 race.