Felipe Drugovich’s career has stalled since he won the Formula 2 championship in 2022, sitting on the sidelines at the Aston Martin F1 Team.
The Brazilian proved throughout his junior career that he can be competitive and win titles, which is vital to becoming a professional driver.
Drugovich has been a key part of the Aston Martin team over the past couple of years but he hasn’t been racing consistently to keep sharp.
Despite being the test and reserve driver at the Aston Martin team, the Brazilian is unlikely to get a race seat soon.
Double world champion Fernando Alonso is driving well, and Lance Stroll is unlikely to leave in the next season or two.
Drugovich is exploring other options such as IndyCar because racing in Formula 1 is unlikely. He has been overtaken by other young stars such as Oliver Bearman and Andrea Kimi Antonelli.
The 24-year-old has tested an IndyCar for Chip Ganassi Racing at Barber Motorsports Park but Juan Pablo Montoya explained to the AS Colombia YouTube channel there is one key thing he needs to remember.
Juan Pablo Montoya feels Felipe Drugovich should remember F1 teams give rookies opportunities in practice
Young drivers are now getting more opportunities to impress in a Formula 1 car than in previous generations with chances in FP1 sessions.
Drivers such as Franco Colapinto and Antonelli both made their debut on a race weekend this season, with varying levels of success.
The Aston Martin reserve driver will have the opportunity to impress at the Mexico City Grand Prix, driving in FP1, although Peter Windsor is doubtful Drugovich’s outing will lead to anything significant.
Montoya feels Drugovich is more likely to race in IndyCar than in Formula 1 despite being part of the team at Aston Martin.
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He said: “I think that Drugovich is closer to racing in IndyCar than Formula 1 and remember that by F1 contract, all teams have to give young development drivers an opportunity in practice.
“Normally, they do it now at the end of the year when there are no more developments. I know they were trying to do tests with teams who would test or have done tests in IndyCar. You know what happens nowadays, everyone tests and they stay silent.”
IndyCar may be the perfect championship for Drugovich to recover his career
IndyCar is a very competitive championship that has seen a lot of drivers from the junior categories below F1 move across, such as Callum Ilott and Christian Lundgaard.
The car is quite similar to Formula 2 with no power steering, this may suit the Brazilian although there are extra complications such as push-to-pass and the hybrid system.
Ovals will also take some adjusting as Drugovich hasn’t raced on that type of circuit. It may be a challenge to adjust to, particularly managing lapped traffic in a race.
Outside of IndyCar, he raced at Le Mans in the Hypercar class for Cadillac, so he has experienced endurance racing as well as single-seaters. This may open more doors for Drugovich as his career progresses.