Ryo Hirakawa: Haas's 32-Year-Old Debutant and F1's Oldest Since 2014
Summary
Haas handed Ryo Hirakawa his F1 race debut in Mexico City after Esteban Ocon was withdrawn for the weekend. At 32, the Toyota WEC champion becomes F1's oldest debutant since Andre Lotterer in 2014.
Haas has handed Ryo Hirakawa his F1 race debut at the Mexico City Grand Prix, replacing Esteban Ocon for the rest of the weekend after running FP1. Hirakawa qualified 19th and, at 32, becomes F1's oldest debutant since Andre Lotterer in 2014.
Why it matters:
A mid-weekend driver change is rare, and it gives Haas a seasoned racer with extensive endurance and single-seater experience. For Hirakawa, it is a long-awaited chance after years on the reserve bench.
The details:
- Hirakawa came through Japanese single-seaters, winning the 2012 Japanese F3 title before moving to Super Formula in 2013. He took four wins and four poles across nine seasons.
- He raced in Super GT's GT500 class from 2014 to 2021, winning the 2017 title.
- With Toyota in WEC's Hypercar era from 2022, he won the drivers' championship alongside Sebastien Buemi and Brendon Hartley in his first season. They repeated in 2023 and added another Le Mans win; Toyota leads the 2026 standings.
- He joined McLaren's development programme in 2023 and made his first FP1 outing in Abu Dhabi 2024. After moving to Alpine for 2025, he switched to Haas, where further FP1 runs led to this call-up.
What's next:
Hirakawa's first target is a clean, controlled race. A solid showing would strengthen his case for more reserve work and keep Haas's unexpected weekend on track.
Original Article :https://www.formula1.com/en/latest/article/who-is-ryo-hirakawa-everything-to-kno...