India's Jehan Daruvala set to make his Formula 2 debut at the Austrian GP this weekend

Indian racing driver Jehan Daruvala in February made headlines after Formula 1 team Red Bull Racing inducted him into their junior programme. Now, Daruvala is going to make his Formula 2 debut at the Austrian GP, supporting the main F1 race, this weekend. A step that could eventually help him in realising his Formula 1 dream.

He drove for Carlin Racing in pre-season testing in Bahrain and topped the timesheets twice. Speaking with Sportstar , Daruvala said this is not an ideal situation as there is no surety if the season would start or not. “So I am as prepared as one could be but it is the same for everyone,” he added.

He also revealed his strategy, saying that he is just focusing on getting the best result on track and realising his eventual dream of getting to F1.

Daruvala’s coach Rayomand Banajee told Sportstar that being on Red Bull’s side bring additional pressure, but the 21-year-old driver is unfazed by it.

The coach said, “It was crucial to get this deal especially after the Force India door closed and this is an even better validation of his credentials to be picked by a race-winning F1 team.”

It’s race week✅ It’s been a long wait for everyone and I’m really excited to get my debut season in the @fiaf2championship underway this week in Austria 🇦🇹 #redbull #redbulljuniorteam #f2 #carlin #pap #winway @redbullracing @_winway @pap_sc @FIA_F2 pic.twitter.com/WMmVI0LAIu

— Jehan Daruvala (@DaruvalaJehan) June 29, 2020

The racing driver told Formula Scout that he is aiming to replicate Formula 1 star Lando Norris’ stellar debut Formula 2 season with Carlin and receive F1 graduation for 2021.

Norris, upon his F2 debut in 2018, won the opening round in Bahrain as Carlin returned to the series. Although Norris could not repeat his performance of the opening round in the title race, he finished runner-up to current Williams F1 driver George Russell.