Formula 1 returned to Budapest this weekend for the Hungarian Grand Prix. First practice marked the firs session of the weekend, and as such, a number of teams were running new and updated parts on their cars in order to improve pace on track.
Daniel Ricciardo fastest in Hungarian Grand Prix FP1
There were two driver changes in first practice, with Alfonso Celis Jr driving for Force India instead of Esteban Ocon, taking up his role as their test driver. Antonio Giovinazzi also took part in FP1 for Haas for the second race weekend in a row, driving instead of Kevin Magnussen.
In the early part of the session, teams were running new parts and this was evident with Red Bull Racing, with Max Verstappen completing his first laps of the session with an aero rake fitted to the car and flow-vis paint applied to his rear wing. This was in order to map the airflow over the car having applied a number of new aerodynamic parts due to the high downforce requirements of the Hungaroring.
It was a messy session for a number of drivers, with Romain Grosjean spinning in turn 3 to nudge the wall, Sebastian Vettel spinning, Stoffel Vandoorne spinning, and Lance Stroll having an off track moment. The biggest mistake made however, was from Antonio Giovinazzi, who crashed his Haas in the second sector, spinning and clouting the wall with some force, causing the red flag to be waved with 57 minutes of the session remaining.
When the green flag waved, the session was without drama as the track began to rubber in until the closing stages when the red flag was shown once again. This time it was for Jolyon Palmer, who had a scary moment when he lost his front wing in turn 4 by running over the kerb on the exit of the corner
When the checkered flag waved, Daniel Ricciardo emerged as the early pace setter for Red Bull Racing, setting a 1:18.486, 0.234 seconds ahead of Kimi Raikkonen who was the next fastest man for Ferrari. Lewis Hamilton was the fastest Mercedes driver in third. 0.372 down on Ricciardo while his championship rival, Sebastian Vettel, was only sixth fastest, one second off the pace.
It was an encouraging day for McLaren, with both Fernando Alonso and Stoffel Vandoorne inside the top ten in terms of pace. This will be due to the strength of McLaren’s chassis and the high downforce requirements of the Hungaroring, with straight line speed not being a major factor for setting a good lap.
Results from Practice 1 of the Hungarian Grand Prix:
- Daniel Ricciardo, Red Bull Racing, 1:18.486
- Kimi Raikkonen, Ferrari, 1:18.720
- Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes, 1:18.858
- Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing, 1:19.162
- Valtteri Bottas, Mercedes, 1:19.248
- Sebastian Vettel, Ferrari, 1:19.563
- Fernando Alonso, McLaren, 1:19.987
- Stoffel Vandoorne, McLaren, 1:20.005
- Nico Hulkenberg, Renault, 1:20.150
- Jolyon Palmer, Renault, 1:20.461
- Felipe Massa, Williams, 1:20.540
- Sergio Perez, Force India, 1:20.574
- Daniil Kvyat, Toro Rosso, 1:20.780
- Carlos Sainz Jr, Toro Rosso, 1:20.917
- Lance Stroll, Williams, 1:20.974
- Romain Grosjean, Haas F1, 1:21.313
- Alfonso Celis Jr, Force India, 1:21.602
- Marcus Ericsson, Sauber, 1:21.785
- Antonio Giovinazzi, Haas F1, 1:22.251
- Pascal Wehrlein, Sauber, 1:22.490
Main Photo
