“It's what I've been working for my whole life," says Arvid Lindblad on his F1 debut

Confidence. It’s not the most essential trait for one to have, but it certainly helps. Now I’m no expert on human behaviour, but not too long ago, I was at the Kari Motor Speedway in Coimbatore covering a race weekend. And as I was interviewing some racers, I seemed to get the impression that they felt happier behind the ‘wheel of their race cars, rather than talking strategy to a wet behind the ears motorsport journalist. This definitely wasn’t the case with Arvid Lindblad. I had the opportunity to interact with Lindblad at a karting track outside Mumbai, and as the blazing sun proceeded to barbecue my skin, the 18-year-old seemed to be unaffected, putting in laps at the circuit in a go-kart and improving his times. When we did actually get a chance to speak, I was slightly taken aback by the racer’s willingness to jump straight into the interview after a spirited session of karting, in a full throttle fashion. And while I definitely felt on a backfoot there, it was clear that Lindblad clearly doesn't lack confidence.

For those unfamiliar, Lindblad’s rise in motorsport has been a fast track journey. At the age of 13, the British driver of Indian origin joined the Red Bull Junior Team, and Lindblad, a protege of former Formula E World Champion Oliver Rowland, set records for being the youngest-ever race winner in both the F3 and F2 championships. His first outing in an F1 car was piloting Yuki Tsunoda’s Red Bull at Silverstone, and Lindblad will now be racing alongside Liam Lawson, the duo forming the 2026 driver line-up for the Racing Bulls team. In an earlier conversation, Lindblad made no secret of the fact that F1 had always been his ultimate goal, and with him now on the cusp of realising the dream, Lindblad said, “It's what I've been working for my whole life, it's something I'm very proud of.”

When quizzed about how it feels to drive an F1 car and how much of a step up it is compared to F2 machinery, Lindblad described the leap as ‘enormous’. “At Silverstone, I think I was 14 seconds quicker in FP1 than I was in F2 practice, so the step is massive. It's hard to pick out one thing. Every aspect of Formula 1 cars, you're just on another level. The braking, the grip, the engine, the downforce – it just feels like everything's at twice the speed. It's amazing to drive a Formula 1. It's so fast, it's really exciting,” said the F1 rookie.

However, Lindblad is aware that he’s risen fairly rapidly through the ranks, and that his debut F1 season could turn out to be challenging. “I'm quite inexperienced compared to the majority of the grid. I've come through (the ranks) very fast. With all the regulation changes next year, there's going to be a lot to learn. It's going to be very difficult, and I'm aware of that, so I'm just focused on working hard with the team over the next couple of months, on the sim, in the factory, and really trying to utilise the pre-season test as best as I can,” he said. Lindblad is also realistic about his ambitions in his debut season. When asked if he has his sights on the championship, the teenager says, “Realistically, it's not feasible in the first year, but you never know.” He goes on to explain, “That's outcome focused and I'm not focused on the outcome and results. I'm focused on working hard, focusing on myself and doing the best I can. I've been working very hard for this goal since I started this journey when I was five, and I'm very proud to have stuck to the timeline.”

Lindblad is also one of the few drivers on the grid with Indian roots, following the likes of Narain Karthikeyan and Karun Chandhok, and when asked about his thoughts on representing India in the sport, Lindblad says, “I'm very proud of my Indian heritage. It's really nice to be here in India. I'm here with my family, learning more about my background and my culture. My whole life I've been exposed to the Indian lifestyle and traditions through my grandparents, and bringing India back to the grid through my heritage is something I'm very excited about.” As we wrapped our conversation, I shook hands with India’s next F1 hopeful and wished him well for his debut season – and just like his demeanour, that handshake too exuded confidence.