Round 13 of the 2024 F1 season began with FP1 at the 2024 Hungarian Grand Prix. Carlos Sainz led the pack with a 1:18.713. He was followed by Max Verstappen with a 1:18.989 and teammate Charles Leclerc with a 1:19.011.
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Carlos Sainz led the pack with a 1:18.713. He was followed by Max Verstappen with a 1:18.989 and teammate Charles Leclerc with a 1:19.011.
Away We Go
The green light went on and Fernando Alonso was first out for Aston Martin. Behind him were Sergio Pérez, Logan Sargeant, George Russell, Valtteri Bottas, Zhou Guanyu, Esteban Ocon, and Pierre Gasly.
As the rest of the grid followed behind, Max Verstappen led George Russell, Daniel Ricciardo, and Lewis Hamilton. However, Lando Norris soon slotted himself P2.
Norris’ teammate Oscar Piastri was yet to enter his car. It was up on the jacks and the mechanics were working away on it. This did not bode well for McLaren, who would need to maximise points this weekend to continue the Constructors Championship battle with Red Bull.
Fastest laps were soon set, with Russell setting a 1:20.083 on mediums for Mercedes. He was 0.6s ahead of Verstappen on softs. The bad luck continued for McLaren as Norris slipped around Turn 13.
Verstappen soon overtook for P1 with a 1:19.831. However, his teammate, Pérez was P20. He has the old-spec car this weekend while Verstappen has an upgrade. Elsewhere, having only lost 12 minutes of running, Piastri was seen exiting the pit-lane. This was good news for McLaren.
While Alonso had climbed to P13, Lance Stroll was P18. The Aston Martin has had an upgrade this weekend, which Stroll stated “The car is quite shocking to drive right now.”
Piastri was 0.007s behind Verstappen in P2. However, the biggest surprise of the weekend thus far came from Williams’ Alex Albon who topped the times on the softs with a 1:19.794.
A minute later, Russell went 0.6s up on Albon’s pace with three purple sectors and a 1:19.137. The Mercedes’ pace was further emphasised by Hamilton’s P2 place 0.150s behind Russell.
Virtual Safety Car
Debris on track between Turns 11 and 12 saw the Virtual Safety Car. Albon was missing a chunk of the edge of his floor. This was an unfortunate hindrance for the Williams driver who thus far has had an impressive start to the weekend.
McLaren proved to be Mercedes’ competitor once again after Norris slotted into P2, 0.074s behind Russell. Hamilton was 0.150s down.
After their tough luck in recent race weekends, Ferrari have arrived. Charles Leclerc found himself P1 with a 1:19.011 while Zhou was P3. Teammate Carlos Sainz then took the top spot with a 1:18.713. He was the first drive to enter the 1:18s.
In what so far was a session full of surprises, Verstappen was P14. However, his soft tyre lap was completed earlier in the session when the track conditions were not at their finest. Once this second lap had been completed, he was up to P2 on the same set he was on earlier.
Final Ten Minutes
Sainz, Verstappen, and Leclerc were the top three with ten minutes to go, each on the soft tyre. Sainz and Verstappen were, thus far, the only two drivers to enter the 1:18s.
Verstappen entered the pits with three minutes to go, inferring that he was satisfied with this session. Zhou slotted in P5mwith a 1:19.180, ahead of both McLarens.
The chequered flag was raised on FP1 for the 2024 Hungarian Grand Prix with Carlos Sainz leading the pack with a 1:18.713. He was followed by Max Verstappen with a 1:18.989 and teammate Charles Leclerc with a 1:19.011.
Your top three from FP1 🔝
— Formula 1 (@F1) July 19, 2024
Max Verstappen splits the Ferraris, with Carlos Sainz putting in the fastest lap ❤️#F1 #HungarianGP pic.twitter.com/xw4WxWyHXH
Image Credit: Ferrari
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