An unusually dry session for FP1 in Spa Francorchamps where Max Verstappen topped the times. With an air temperature of 24 degrees and a track temperature of 41 degrees, teams used the perfect conditions to test their updates. The new regulations showed how different racing in Belgium will be as drivers had to lift to save the battery.
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Grid Penalties for Norris, Hadjar and Stroll
Coming into the weekend we learned that Lando Norris will have a 10 place grid penalty for a new power unit. Norris used the session to test various parts using aero rakes. Isack Hadjar will start from the back of the grid multiple power unit parts changes. Lance Stroll also has a 10 place grid penalty due to a new MGUK . Jak Crawford was the only rookie driver in FP1 when he drove Fernando Alonso’s car.
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The practice session started off with a radio message from Pierre Gasly who said his car felt light turning right and heavy turning left. After 7 minutes we started seeing solid times from Hadjar with a 1.48.919 on soft tyres. However at the 10 minute mark his time was beaten by Max Verstappen with a 1.48.237 on mediums.
Lots of testing in FP1
Drivers were testing the limits of their cars throughout the session. Liam Lawson ran wide as well as a big lock up for Hulkenberg within the first 15 minutes. With a quarter of the session done, Red Bull looked strong with Mercedes looking a bit behind the pace. Racing Bulls had a solid first 15 minutes with their drivers in 6th and 7th.
There was a lot of testing during the session. Hadjar and Verstappen tested different front wings to get the right downforce set up for the challenging Belgian track. Mercedes and McLaren tested various battery management strategies.
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Carlos Sainz has a session to forget
Carlos Sainz had a rough session. His lap time was deleted for track limits in Turn 11. He also had a close call with Kimi Antonelli who was on a fast lap on the second part of Stavelot. If that wasn’t enough, he is also being investigated after the session for crossing the line at pit entry.
Strong session for Red Bull
At the half hour mark Red Bull continued to look strong with Hadjar leading Antonelli and Verstappen in the times.
Hadjar 1.47.322, Antonelli +0.281, Verstappen + 0.537
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The Red Bulls continued to shine on pace with another fast lap for Max Verstappen He led the field with 15 minutes to go with a 1.47.070 followed by Hamilton and Leclerc. Carlos Sainz’s woes continued as he locked up into turn 1
Hydraulic issues for Piastri
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An unusual sight greeted us as Lance Stroll’s nose camera became loose after running wide. Leclerc also picked the scenic route running wide towards the end of the session. With only a few minutes to go the yellow flag appeared as Oscar Piastri pulled over in Le Combes with issues with hydraulic pressure. He got going again but was told to drive very slowly to the pits to avoid full hydraulic failure.
Max Verstappen topped the times in FP1. Your top 10 from FP1 was as follows.
Verstappen, Hamilton, Leclerc, Hadjar, Piastri, Antonelli, Norris, Russell, Linblad and Bortoletto.