Juri Vips named Red Bull's reserve driver for Turkish GP
Formula 2 driver Juri Vips will join Red Bull and sister Formula 1 team AlphaTauri to serve as its reserve driver for this weekend’s Turkish Grand Prix.
Vips, 20, has been part of the Red Bull junior programme since the end of 2018, and had been due to race in Super Formula this year, only for travel restrictions to complicate his plans.
Vips has instead made appearances in both F2 and the Formula Regional European Championship, and will now serve as Red Bull’s reserve driver in Istanbul this weekend.
Red Bull announced on Twitter that Vips had completed the required 300km in an F1 car to gain an FIA superlicence, meaning he would be eligible to race if required.
Vips will deputise for regular Red Bull and AlphaTauri reserves Sebastian Buemi and Sergio Sette Camara, both of whom are tied up with other commitments this weekend. Buemi is racing for Toyota in the FIA World Endurance Championship season finale in Bahrain.
Vips currently has 32 superlicence points to his name accrued through junior categories, but benefits from the recent changes to the FIA requirements that allow drivers with more than 30 points to be eligible if their programmes were impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Vips is yet to make an appearance in Super Formula this year, with Red Bull appearing to have abandoned plans for him to feature in the Japanese series.
Vips joined DAMS in F2 as a replacement for the injured Sean Gelael from the Spa round onwards, and has scored 16 points in eight races, including a podium at the Mugello sprint race.
With Gelael set to return from his back injury for the round in Bahrain later this month, it is unclear if Vips will have any more racing duties through 2020.
He has not raced in the Formula Regional European Championship since the Mugello round last month, having scored three podiums in nine races this year.
Related video
Previous article
Ferrari team principal Binotto to skip Turkish GP
Next article
The brutal side of F1 that's not unsettling Kvyat
About this article
| Series | Formula 1 |
| Event | Turkish GP |
| Drivers | Jüri Vips |
| Teams | Red Bull Racing , AlphaTauri |
| Author | Luke Smith |
Why Verstappen isn't interested in the hype game
In a pre-season where Red Bull has been unusually quiet, Max Verstappen has also been guarded about the team's fortunes in 2021. Even after trying the RB16B for the first time at Silverstone, the Dutchman was careful to manage expectations
The pros and cons of F1's 2021 rule changes
In the strategy for grand prix racing's future, 2021 represents a significant step towards the goal of closer racing and a more level playing field. That's the theory behind the latest raft of changes, but will they have the desired effect?
What Red Bull is trying to hide with its RB16B launch
Red Bull made no secret of the fact its 2021 F1 car is an evolution of its predecessor, but in keeping the same foundations while hiding some tightly-guarded updates with its RB16B, the team aims to avoid suffering the same pitfalls of previous years
How Albon plans to fight his way out of Red Bull limbo
Alex Albon has faced the media for the first time since he lost his Red Bull drive at the end of 2020 and dropped out of a Formula 1 race seat altogether. He has a history of bouncing back from setbacks, so here's what he must do to rise again
Ranked! Carlin's greatest F1 graduates
Carlin has helped guide enough drivers to Formula 1 to fill out an entire grid, plus a handful of reserves, to create a remarkable alumni list. With Yuki Tsunoda set to join that group, Motorsport.com has ranked its graduates to grace the grand prix scene...
Why Alfa's 2021 launch says more about its 2022 plans
Alfa Romeo launched its C41 with a revised front nose, but there's little to suggest it will surge up the leaderboard in 2021. As the team frankly admits, it's putting its eggs in the basket labelled 2022 and hoping to hold the eighth place it earned last year
Why Gasly’s AlphaTauri haven is a blessing and a curse
Red Bull opted not to re-sign Pierre Gasly even before it decided to drop Alex Albon and so the Frenchman's Formula 1 journey will continue at AlphaTauri. This has positive and negative connotations for one of last season's star performers.
Eight things Red Bull must do to beat Mercedes in 2021
After seven years of defeat at the hands of Mercedes, Red Bull is as hungry as ever to secure a fifth world championship. But there are key challenges it must overcome in 2021 to switch from challenger to conqueror
