Nikola Tsolov made his first appearance in an official Formula 1 session and finished 12th in the first free practice session before the Mexico City Grand Prix. The Bulgarian driver drives for Racing Bulls in place of the titular driver Liam Lawson.
Tsolov recorded a time of 1:19.604 minutes and made 29 laps of the track. He was 1.476 seconds behind the fastest in the practice session, Charles Leclerc. His teammate Arvid Lindblad finished tenth with a time of 1:19.478, leaving a gap of 0.126 seconds between the two Racing Bulls drivers.
After the session, Tsolov described his debut as a special moment and stressed that he managed to avoid unnecessary tension.
“Today was an extremely special day for me and something I have been dreaming about since I started competing. The atmosphere in Formula 1 is completely different, just incredible“, said Tsolov.
The Bulgarian driver said that the team helped him feel as comfortable as possible in his first official session. He described the car as very different from the cars he has driven so far, but added that he found a good pace relatively quickly.
“We accomplished all the tasks we had set for this session, and I look forward to every next opportunity to continue improving“, Tsolov also said.
Participation in Mexico City is important for Tsolov's ambitions for a starting spot in Formula 1. Racing Bulls has not yet announced its lineup for the 2027 season, and team boss Alan Permain has already named the Bulgarian as a candidate.
Tsolov will spend the rest of the racing weekend with the team to gain additional experience and get to know the team's work in more detail. After his first practice session, he said he was looking forward to every opportunity to develop in the Racing Bulls car.