The Hungarian Grand Prix usually acts as Formula 1’s final round before a much-needed summer break, but this year the drivers and teams will be required to stay on for a few extra days in order to take part in the post-race testing session.
Replacing Silverstone as the usual second in-season test venue, the Hungaroring track will thus offer drivers and F1 teams eight hours of running on both August 1 and 2.
The official testing session at the circuit located in Mogyorod, near Budapest, will give Charles Leclerc the opportunity to jump inside a 2017 Formula 1 car for the first time as he will test for Scuderia Ferrari following the 2017 Hungarian Grand Prix.
The 19-year-old Monegasque racing driver is part of the Maranello team’s young driver academy and, as his stock continues to rise, there is increasing speculation that he is being lined up for a place on the grid for the 2018 Formula One championship (it is believed that if Charles Leclerc wins the GP3 Series championship, he would follow Daniil Kvyat and Valtteri Bottas straight from GP3 into F1 with Haas next season). In the meanwhile the Hungaroring testing session will provide Scuderia Ferrari with an ideal opportunity to evaluate whether he is ready to take the step up at this early stage career, yet Charles Leclerc is no stranger to Formula One cars having tested in the 2014 Ferrari and taking part in several FP1 sessions for Haas last year.
The Maranello team have officially confirmed the news and also announced that Kimi Raikkonen will be the other driver to take part in the testing session after the 2017 Hungarian Grand Prix.
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