McLaren reserve driver Leo Fornaroli just completed an important test session at Circuit Paul Ricard to shake off the rust before his upcoming Formula 1 free practice outings. The 21-year-old Italian driver hit the track in the MCL39, the very car that won Lando Norris the drivers' championship and brought McLaren the constructors' title last season. It's his sixth test outing with the Woking squad, and it came at exactly the right time with Mexico and Brazil on the horizon.

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Fornaroli's been on FP1 duty before, taking part in sessions back in Barcelona and Budapest. But it's been months since he last sat in a current-spec McLaren race car, so getting some quality track time before the next two practice sessions was essential. He put in 58 laps around Le Castellet, covering 339 kilometres while the team worked through their testing programme. There was even a light shower in the afternoon that could've disrupted things, but the squad pushed through and completed everything they'd planned.

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The whole test was designed to prepare him for what's coming in Mexico and Brazil. Fornaroli's work included longer runs to simulate what those actual practice sessions will feel like. After it was all done, he couldn't hide his excitement about driving the championship-winning machine. He said getting back in an F1 car after a few months felt brilliant, and experiencing the MCL39 for the first time made it even better. He thanked the team and McLaren's junior programme for the opportunity, clearly pumped about rejoining everyone in Mexico.

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Jake Hughes, McLaren's test and development driver, also got some valuable sim and track work in during the session. The Brit completed 52 laps covering nearly 300 kilometres, marking his second test of the year after an earlier outing in Barcelona. Hughes has been helping develop the MCL40 in the simulator, so these real-world tests keep him sharp and valuable to the team's ongoing development efforts.

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