Robert Shwartzman

Robert Shwartzman, born in Tel-Aviv on 16 September 1999, is an Israeli racing driver. He last competed in the FIA Formula 2 Championship in 2020 and 2021, where he finished 4th and 2nd respectively for Prema Racing. In 2021, he was only beaten by the very highly rated Oscar Piastri, a 2023 McLaren driver in the F1. In 48 starts in F2, Shwartzman scored six wins and 13 podium finishes.

The young man (23 years old), is a reserve and development driver for Ferrari this season and Mattia Binotto, Scuderia Ferrari’s team principal, impressed by his progress, declared: “Every time he drove a F1 car, he was very fast. There as some drivers that are excellent in F3, F2 and that are not good enough for F1. I think Robert is just the opposite. He was excellent in F3 and F2 but he’s very very strong in F1. He ‘s a fantastic talent, who deserves a full-time drive in Formula 1.”

We’ve rarely heard Mattia Binotto so enthusiastic about a young driver of the Ferrari Academy. Will the Scuderia Ferrari continue the development of Shwartzman, or will they try to place the young talent in another team?  Time will tell, but we might have the first Israeli driver (picture below in F2 in 2021) on a Formula 1 grid, sooner than later.