Ryō Hirakawa leaves Alpine to join Haas
Having taken part in the opening practice at the Japanese Grand Prix with Alpine, Ryō Hirakawa has announced that he will join Haas as reserve driver in the remainder of the 2025 F1 season.
The Japanese driver – who currently competes for Toyota in the FIA World Endurance Championship – will now join Haas following a successful outing at the post-season test in Abu Dhabi last December where he drove the American team’s VF-24.
Having participated in several FP1 outings with F1 teams, from 2024 to as recently as last weekend in Japan, Hirakawa will get behind the wheel of the VF-25 at four FP1 sessions this season.
The Japanese driver will take over driving duties from Oliver Bearman in the opening practice at this weekend's Bahrain Grand Prix, and again in Mexico later in the season. His team-mate Esteban Ocon will then vacate his seat for free practice sessions for Hirakawa in Spain and Abu Dhabi.
The 2022 24 Hours of Le Mans winner, and two-time Hypercar Champion has experience over multiple disciplines; including Super Formula, Super GT and the World Endurance Championship.
Commenting on the announcement, Hirakawa said: “I’m excited to join MoneyGram Haas F1 Team, I really appreciate this opportunity, and I’m really looking forward to a new journey with the team.
“I’m driving my first FP1 session in Bahrain, so for me to have driven at two race weekends in a row is exciting, and I can’t wait to get to Bahrain. I would like to thank Komatsu-san, MoneyGram Haas F1 Team, Morizo-san (Akio Toyoda, Chairman of Toyota Motor Corporation) and Toyota GAZOO Racing for this opportunity, it’s a new challenge for me and I can’t wait to get started.”
“It’s great to welcome Ryō to MoneyGram Haas F1 Team and have his experience bolster our knowledge and understanding of the VF-25,” shared Haas team boss Ayao Komatsu.
“His feedback was very detailed at the post-season test last year, so being able to provide Ryō valuable track time across four different circuits this year will help the entire team. As part of our collaboration with Toyota GAZOO Racing, it’s great to welcome new talent into the team – it’s a real pleasure to work with a racer of his driving acumen.”
