Williams confirmed on 27 October 2026 that Luke Browning will make 2 more rookie practice appearances, taking Alex Albon's car in Mexico City and Carlos Sainz's in São Paulo. The outings will complete the team's required rookie practice allocation this season.
Williams assigns both opening sessions to Browning
Williams identifies Browning as its reserve driver and academy member. He is due to drive Albon's car in the opening session at the Mexican Grand Prix, then Sainz's at the Brazilian Grand Prix. These are the team's remaining mandated rookie sessions, according to its announcement on 27 October.
The team says Browning will have driven all 4 of its required rookie opening sessions this season after the Brazil appearance. His most recent such run came at the Italian Grand Prix. Williams has therefore assigned the remaining practice opportunities to a driver who has already worked in the car this year, while Albon and Sainz each give up an opening session at different events.
Mexico will be Browning's first time in the Williams car since the lighter chassis upgrade introduced in Baku. The team says the experience will help him understand the revised package and provide data and feedback for his simulator work.
Williams Sporting Director Sven Smeets said, “It’s valuable for us to have consistency in the driver across all four of our rookie test sessions” in the team announcement. He linked that consistency to comparing track data with simulator work.
Reserve duties and the official calendar
Williams says Browning is racing for Team Kondo Racing in Japan's Super Formula while serving as its Formula One reserve. His reserve role also includes race weekend availability, data analysis and simulator work. The Italian Grand Prix outing cited by the team makes the Mexico appearance a return to practice, rather than a debut.
SportsRivo checked the separate Formula 1 schedules against Williams' announcement: the Mexico City page lists opening practice on 30 October 2026, and the São Paulo page lists it on 6 November 2026. The two dates place his planned appearances one week apart. Both schedule pages still show the sessions as upcoming, so the announcement establishes assignments, not completed track time.
What the sessions change
- Browning will get his first track experience of Williams' lighter chassis package since its introduction in Baku. The team expects his feedback to support subsequent simulator work.
- Albon's car is allocated to Browning in Mexico and Sainz's in Brazil, so each regular driver gives up a different opening practice session under Williams' plan.
- The Brazil run would complete Williams' 4 mandated rookie opening sessions for the season, with Browning having driven every one, according to the team.
Next confirmed practice dates
Formula 1 lists Mexico City's opening practice for 30 October 2026 and São Paulo's for 6 November 2026. Browning's participation remains scheduled for those sessions under Williams' 27 October announcement.
Source: Atlassian Williams F1 Team