Mercedes Reserve Driver Nyck de Vries has completed a seat fitting at McLaren after Lando Norris was struck down ill ahead of this weekend’s Sao Paulo Grand Prix.
McLaren announced on Thursday morning that the 22-year-old would be absent from the Interlagos circuit after a suspected bout of food poisoning.
Norris was scheduled to appear at the FIA Press Conference, though that and other media commitments were cancelled.
While expected to make a full recovery and take full part in the Sao Paulo Grand Prix weekend, the team took the precautionary measure of completing a seat fitting for de Vries.
The Dutchman is one member of the pool of drivers McLaren has access to courtesy of its relationship with power unit supplier Mercedes, which also includes Stoffel Vandoorne.
Oscar Piastri is also on call for the team, should he not be required by Alpine, though the Australian is not in Brazil this weekend.
De Vries was called into action at the Italian Grand Prix when Williams driver Alex Albon was struck down with appendicitis.
Having completed Free Practice 1 for Aston Martin on the Friday, the Formula E world champion switched camps overnight, becoming just the second driver in F1 history to drive for two different teams on the same weekend.
Meanwhile, this is the second time this season that Norris has headed into an event under a cloud after he contracted tonsillitis over the Spanish Grand Prix which put him in doubt for Monaco.
De Vries will join Scuderia AlphaTauri for the 2023 season in place of Pierre Gasly, who in turn will switch to Alpine.
That drive became available after Fernando Alonso opted to join Aston Martin following Sebastian Vettel’s retirement, and Piastri’s decision to join McLaren.
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