Arvid Lindblad continues to draw attention in his debut season in Formula 1, and the young Racing Bulls driver received another important vote of confidence ahead of the Canadian GP. For Oliver Rowland, the Briton’s mentor, the rookie has already shown he has ‘all the necessary ingredients’ to establish himself in the category.
Read more F1: Las Vegas GP receives approval to continue until 2037
The eighteen-year-old driver is the only rookie on the grid in 2026, and started his journey positively by scoring points in his very first race, at the Australian GP. Even facing natural adaptation challenges, Lindblad continues to be seen as one of the main promises revealed by the Red Bull academy in recent years.
Rowland, current Formula E champion, closely follows the young talent’s progress and has been present at practically all the season’s stages that did not coincide with commitments in the electric category. In an interview with Motorsport Week, he gave an honest assessment of the Briton’s performance so far: “It has been a journey with ups and downs, which is expected,” said Rowland.
“The first race was exceptional. Miami was a bit disappointing and we have a lot to analyze. It’s not easy for him in a weekend with a Sprint format, especially with reliability issues and having missed the Sprint in Miami.”
Even with recent difficulties, the mentor and driver believes Lindblad’s potential remains evident: “All the main ingredients are there and we need to keep working hard. It’s a matter of ups and downs, but that’s quite normal when you’re a rookie,” said the Formula E champion.
Read more Canada GP 2026: the days and times of F1 in Montreal
The Canadian GP will represent another important challenge for the Racing Bulls driver. Just like in Miami, Lindblad has never raced on the Montreal circuit, which increases the level of difficulty in a season marked by the new Formula 1 cars and the more electrified rules introduced in 2026.
Rowland also highlighted the importance of the environment around the young driver to accelerate his development in the category: “We have a fast teammate, Liam (Lawson), who is already quite experienced in Formula 1. We also have a very good group of people around him and we analyze afterwards what he did well and what he did wrong,” he added.
Finally, the Briton reinforced that the rookie’s progress continues to be closely monitored: “The start was very good. There is a lot to learn from Miami, and Montreal probably won’t be the easiest circuit. But we will be there watching everything,” concluded Rowland about Lindblad’s fifth GP in Formula 1.
Read more F1: Button points out Antonelli’s weakness in the title fight
