The FIA is due to discuss awarding Red Bull junior Arvid Lindblad a super licence exemption, which will allow him to compete in F1 immediately.
RacingNews365 can confirm the subject will be on the agenda in Macau next week, when the World Motor Sport Council (WMSC) meets for its Extraordinary General Assemblies and Conference.
If Red Bull's request is approved, the F2 driver could be an instant option for the Milton Keynes team, especially if Max Verstappen incurs an F1 race ban.
In that eventuality, Lindblad would likely take a reserve role for the weekend - potentially in extension of his usual F2 duties - with Ayumu Iwasa stepping into a race seat or one of the two drives at Racing Bulls, with either Liam Lawson or Isack Hadjar then deputising for the four-time drivers' champion at Red Bull, alongside Yuki Tsunoda.
Although Lindblad has enough FIA super licence points to race in F1, he is below the minimum age of 18. The 17-year-old will not satisfy that criteria under shortly after the Hungarian Grand Prix in August.
That rule came into place, coincidentally, after Verstappen ascended to F1 in 2015 at 17 years of age. However, it was relaxed last season, with the following provision written into the FIA's International Sporting Code.
The clause is Appendix L of Article 13.1.2, which states: "At the sole discretion of the FIA, a driver judged to have recently and consistently demonstrated outstanding ability and maturity in single-seater formula car competition may be granted a Super Licence at the age of 17 years old."
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Lindblad reached the required 40-point threshold earlier in the year, after winning the Formula Regional Oceania title.
He secured 18 super licence points for that championship, to go with the 15 he procured for finishing fourth in FIA F3 last season.
That, in addition to a further 12 points from F4 campaigns, takes him to 45 - easily clear of the aforementioned mark.
This means his availability to step up to F1 next season is not contingent upon his championship position in F2 come the end of the current campaign.
He currently sits third in the standings midway through his rookie season at that level, so he would likely have surpassed the 40-point mark, but his performances may be enough to see the FIA vote in his and Red Bull's favour.
Red Bull initially submitted the exemption request a few months back, but with the previous WMSC meeting being in late February, it has not yet been discussed or voted upon.
At the time, as the six-time F1 constructors' champions already had a full fleet of drivers, including current reserve Iwasa, the application was not time sensitive and therefore did not need to be expedited.
Whilst that remains the case, Verstappen's precarious position on 11 of 12 allowed FIA super licence penalty points over the past 12 months means it may need to turn to Lindblad, in some capacity, earlier than planned.
If Verstappen collects a penalty point at either of the next two races in Canada or Austria, he wil incur an immediate ban. The first points on his licence do not expire until June 30.
It is not yet clear what the outcome of the FIA's discussion at the WMSC will be.
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