The Hungarian GP weekend got underway at the Hungaroring with the two Friday practice sessions. As expected, the two practice sessions showed Scuderia Ferrari and Red Bull Racing cars with an advantage over Mercedes.
Hungarian GP – Friday Free Practice Report
Both free practice sessions started under dry conditions. The air temperature was 27.3 degrees C, and the track temperature was 40 degrees C in FP1. FP2 temperatures were at 28 and 50 degrees C, respectively.
The Pirelli tire choice for this race is the same as the previous race in Germany. The white-striped medium tire, yellow-striped soft tire, and the purple-striped ultrasoft tire.
Red Bull’s Daniel Ricciardo led the way in the first practice session with a 1:17.613s lap time. Then, Sebastian Vettel put Ferrari on top of the timesheets in the second practice session (1:16.834s).
The main takeaways from the two practice sessions were:
- Ferrari and Red Bull drivers are favorites to be on pole, as expected. Vettel looks to be the favourite at this track for the third time in four years.
- Mercedes’ drivers, Valtteri Bottas and Lewis Hamilton, worked with the three tires available for the weekend. Hamilton had some tough moments and went off the track a couple of times while trying to find the limits of the car, as usual.
- Ricciardo’s gap to Vettel in FP1 was just 0.079s. His best time in FP1 was achieved with the soft tire, while Vettel’s lap was on the ultrasoft.
- Although Red Bull had a strong day, both cars had problems finding performance in the all-important first sector.
- Vettel was 0.074s faster than Max Verstappen in FP2. Both times were marked with the ultrasoft tire.
- Renault and Haas will have a battle for the midfield supremacy throughout the weekend. The two teams had mixed fortunes in FP1, with Haas’ Romain Grosjean in P7 in front of the Renault pair, Nico Hulkenberg and Carlos Sainz, and his teammate Kevin Magnussen. Grosjean took P7 in FP2 too, with Sainz behind him.
- Hulkenberg had to retire from FP1 due to electrical issues. The German was able to get on track with about 40 minutes left in FP2 and managed to be 14th.
- Ferrari and Red Bull were stronger than Mercedes in the long runs with the ultrasoft tire. The German side performed better in the hot conditions with the yellow-striped soft tire, which is usually the best tire for the W09.
- Italian Antonio Giovinazzi took Charles Leclerc‘s seat at Sauber in the morning session. The Monegasque took part in FP2 and finished in 17th place.
The Last Word
Ferrari and Red Bull look stronger than the rest of the field, which is not shocking since the track characteristics suits the cars of both teams. Mercedes was a step behind on Friday and might have a difficult weekend, although there is a possibility of rain showers for the weekend.
Results of FP1:
| POS | DRIVER | TIME | GAP | LAPS |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1:17.613 | 30 | ||
| 2 | 1:17.692 | +0.079s | 24 | |
| 3 | 1:17.701 | +0.088s | 29 | |
| 4 | 1:17.948 | +0.335s | 23 | |
| 5 | 1:18.036 | +0.423s | 28 | |
| 6 | 1:18.470 | +0.857s | 20 | |
| 7 | 1:18.975 | +1.362s | 17 | |
| 8 | 1:19.025 | +1.412s | 14 | |
| 9 | 1:19.128 | +1.515s | 32 | |
| 10 | 1:19.187 | +1.574s | 29 | |
| 11 | 1:19.352 | +1.739s | 30 | |
| 12 | 1:19.690 | +2.077s | 24 | |
| 13 | 1:19.841 | +2.228s | 32 | |
| 14 | 1:20.012 | +2.399s | 33 | |
| 15 | 1:20.065 | +2.452s | 30 | |
| 16 | 1:20.151 | +2.538s | 28 | |
| 17 | 1:20.159 | +2.546s | 27 | |
| 18 | 1:20.293 | +2.680s | 31 | |
| 19 | 1:20.307 | +2.694s | 28 | |
| 20 | 1:20.697 | +3.084s | 12 |
Results of FP2:
| POS | DRIVER | TIME | GAP | LAPS |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1:16.834 | 45 | ||
| 2 | 1:16.908 | +0.074s | 35 | |
| 3 | 1:17.061 | +0.227s | 36 | |
| 4 | 1:17.153 | +0.319s | 40 | |
| 5 | 1:17.587 | +0.753s | 43 | |
| 6 | 1:17.868 | +1.034s | 46 | |
| 7 | 1:18.065 | +1.231s | 39 | |
| 8 | 1:18.495 | +1.661s | 38 | |
| 9 | 1:18.518 | +1.684s | 43 | |
| 10 | 1:18.761 | +1.927s | 41 | |
| 11 | 1:18.850 | +2.016s | 42 | |
| 12 | 1:18.857 | +2.023s | 38 | |
| 13 | 1:18.880 | +2.046s | 35 | |
| 14 | 1:18.913 | +2.079s | 23 | |
| 15 | 1:18.916 | +2.082s | 41 | |
| 16 | 1:19.043 | +2.209s | 42 | |
| 17 | 1:19.137 | +2.303s | 38 | |
| 18 | 1:19.645 | +2.811s | 45 | |
| 19 | 1:19.712 | +2.878s | 38 | |
| 20 | 1:19.770 | +2.936s | 45 |
MAIN PHOTO:
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