Ezivox

Ezivox

Vettel fastest in FP1 in Abu Dhabi

Sebastian Vettel kicked off the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix weekend by topping the event’s first free practice, edging out Lewis Hamilton by just over a tenth of a second.

Only 0.148s  separated the top three drivers, with Red Bull’s Max Verstappen in third, a tight spread which bodes well for the remainder of the weekend.


Abu Dhabi Grand Prix – Free Practice 1 results

Pos Driver Team Time Gap Laps

1
Sebastian Vettel
Ferrari
1:39.006s

23

2
Lewis Hamilton
Mercedes
1:39.126s
+ 0.120s

25

3
Max Verstappen
Red Bull
1:39.154s
+ 0.148s

15

4
Kimi Räikkönen
Ferrari
1:39.518s
+ 0.512s

22

5
Valtteri Bottas
Mercedes
1:39.741s
+ 0.735s

30

6
Sergio Pérez
Force India
1:40.293s
+ 1.287s

24

7
Fernando Alonso
McLaren
1:40.522s
+ 1.516s

20

8
Stoffel Vandoorne
McLaren
1:40.569s
+ 1.563s

15

9
Felipe Massa
Williams
1:40.723s
+ 1.717s

27

10
Daniel Ricciardo
Red Bull
1:40.773s
+ 1.767s

29

11
George Russell
Force India
1:41.131s
+ 2.125s

26

12
Romain Grosjean
Haas
1:41.306s
+ 2.300s

24

13
Lance Stroll
Williams
1:41.581s
+ 2.575s

27

14
Pierre Gasly
Toro Rosso
1:41.646s
+ 2.640s

29

15
Carlos Sainz
Renault
1:41.748s
+ 2.742s

23

16
Pascal Wehrlein
Sauber
1:41.752s
+ 2.746s

26

17
Nico Hülkenberg
Renault
1:41.864s
+ 2.858s

26

18
Antonio Giovinazzi
Haas
1:42.065s
+ 3.059s

21

19
Marcus Ericsson
Sauber
1:42.344s
+ 3.338s

28

20
Brendon Hartley
Toro Rosso
1:42.585s
+ 3.579s

35


Whether it be drivers or bits and pieces, Friday’s first practice session saw most teams test and trial as the 90-minute daytime run at Yas Marina is typically conducted in conditions which are very different than those which shall prevail in qualifying and in the race.

Two driver changes were noted at the outset, with George Russell standing in for Esteban Ocon at Force India, while Antonio Giovinazzi was on duty at Haas, standing in for Kevin Magnussen.

Toro Rosso’s Brendon Hartley, a man who has been plagued with reliability issues since his arrival in F1, was the first driver to take to the track.

Kimi Raikkonen pulled out of the Ferrari garage with his car sporting an array of sensors, while 2017 world champion Lewis Hamilton was seen wearing brand new gold lid.

Meanwhile, Mercedes team mate Valtteri Bottas put himself at the top of the timesheet early on with both Silver Arrows putting in some good mileage at the ouset.

McLaren – which endures its final race with Honda this weekend – put Fernando Alonso on a testing programme, with the Spaniard limited to the odd exploratory lap and failing to set a proper time in the session’s first hour. When he did string together a few laps, he put himself immediately in the top ten.

In the Red Bull camp, Max Verstappen bolted on a set of purple ultrasofts in an attempt to join the Mercedes-Ferrari battle, which he promptly succeeded in doing by placing himself P2, right behind Hamilton.

Both Nico Hulkenberg and Giovinazzi briefly brought out the yellow flags when both drivers found themselves facing the wrong way on the track, in separate incidents.

Romain Grosjean also slipped off the track to bring out a third yellow, the Haas driver tagging the barriers at Turn 19 but without too much damage.

Twenty minutes from the end of the session, Sebastian Vettel vaulted to the top with a 1m39.006, just one tenth ahead of Hamilton, and FP1 concluded with the German fastest remaining there.

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