Home hero Verstappen fastest in FP1 ahead of the Dutch Grand Prix
Home hero Verstappen fastest in FP1 ahead of the Dutch Grand Prix
Max Verstappen ensured it was business as usual for Red Bull after topping the timesheet in FP1 ahead of the Dutch Grand Prix.
Determined to impress in his home race and in front of a sea of orange, the world champion and this year's runaway leader was fastest with a time of 1:11.852.
Fernando Alonso finished second, two-tenths behind Verstappen's best effort.
Lewis Hamilton took third, with a blistering effort in the latter stages of the session hamstrung by an untimely crash from Nico Hulkenberg's Haas at Turn 13.
Sergio Perez settled for fourth but impressed after switching to the soft tyres.
Alex Albon's Williams ended the hour in fifth, meanwhile.
Rounding off the rest of the top 10 were Lando Norris, Logan Sargeant, Oscar Piastri, Yuki Tsunoda and Esteban Ocon.
Charles Leclerc could only finish 16th in his visibly sluggish Ferrari, while rookie Robert Shwartzmann, drafted in for the session, propped up the standings.
READ MORE: F1 star in HOT WATER with stewards for bizarre infraction at Dutch Grand Prix
Hulk smash
The red flags were waved with a quarter of the session remaining after Hulkenberg's Haas crashed at the penultimate corner.
Replays showed Hulkenberg losing the rear of his car on entry and brushing the barrier. He was then unable to escape the gravel trap.
The rapid Hamilton, who had pulled on softs and gone purple in sector one, was forced to abandon his lap after slamming on the brakes.
His front wing sustained damage, a major blow to Guenther Steiner due to the limited numbers of the part. Stones may have ripped the floor, too.
Rookie run out
Ferrari opted to hand an opportunity to Shwartzmann for the session, with the rookie jumping behind the wheel instead of Carlos Sainz.
Shwartzmann has been a member of the Ferrari Driving Academy since 2017 and serves as the Scuderia's reserve driver after leaving Formula 2 in 2021.
Teams will turn to their young drivers for the final 10 rounds, with the rules stipulating they must let their talents race in at least two FP1 sessions per year.
Ultimately, Shwartzmann struggled in the session and finished the hour comfortably adrift of the pace. Leclerc also struggled to find pace.
Upgrade testing
Venturing out for the first few exploratory laps, several cars weaved around the circuit sporting various pieces of extra furniture and aero rakes.
Seemingly, teams attempted to discover if the upgrades introduced this weekend were effective, with McLaren among those looking to push their boundaries.
The extra additions were stripped from Norris' machine halfway through the hour, allowing him to run clean and provide further invaluable data.
Highlighter paint was also spotted on the Red Bull while Alfa Romeo fixed aero rakes to the bottom of their cars, with testing continuing across the session.
Stroll to the pits
Lance Stroll is enduring a stop-start season in comparison to team-mate Alonso and this fortune was encapsulated neatly in the first runnings on Friday.
Forced to wait until 30 minutes in before leaving his garage, Stroll was then promptly summoned back to the pits after an issue was discovered.
"There is a funny noise," Stroll reported over team radio.
Stroll sat out of his media duties yesterday as he recovers from an infection and to add insult to illness, he was not able to re-emerge in FP1.
Dutch Grand Prix FP1 practice results
1. Max Verstappen (Red Bull): 1:11.852
2. Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin): +0.278
3. Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes): +0.373
4. Sergio Perez (Red Bull): +0.471
5. Alex Albon (Williams) +0.595
6. Lando Norris (McLaren): +0.608 7. Logan Sargeant (Williams): +0.765
8. Oscar Piastri (McLaren): +0.806
9. Yuki Tsunoda (AlphaTauri): +0.897
10. Esteban Ocon (Alpine): +0.950
11. George Russell (Mercedes): +0.961
12. Pierre Gasly (Alpine): +1.043
13. Daniel Ricciardo (AlphaTauri): +1.138
14. Kevin Magnussen (Haas): +1.470
15. Valtteri Bottas (Alfa Romeo): +1.596
16. Charles Leclerc (Ferrari): +1.667
17. Zhou Guanyu (Alfa Romeo): +1.974
18. Nico Hulkenberg (Haas): +2.171
19. Robert Shwartzman* (Ferrari): +2.951
20. Lance Stroll (Aston Martin): No Time
READ MORE: McLaren admit Norris and Piastri are NOT on verge of brush with greatness
Related news
Mercedes chief lifts lid on Hamilton qualifying struggle
Zandvoort to be EXTENDED in 2024 amid rising success of the Dutch Grand Prix
Verstappen on course for ANOTHER record as Russell suffers worst Mercedes result ever
A-list celebrity photo with Sky Sports F1 pundit gets ROYAL approval
Most read
FIA take action after Verstappen track limits mishap
F1 News Today: FIA make changes as Mercedes receive double penalty and Horner curses bad luck
Red Bull to replace driver at Abu Dhabi Grand Prix
Stroll issues Alonso Aston Martin contract verdict
Horner takes aim at Kravitz with savage jibe at Sky Sports pundit
F1 Standings
Drivers
- Charles Leclerc
- Carlos Sainz
- Lando Norris
- Oscar Piastri
- Pierre Gasly
- Esteban Ocon
- Sergio Pérez
- Max Verstappen
- Alexander Albon
- Logan Sargeant
- Lewis Hamilton
- George Russell
- Nico Hülkenberg
- Kevin Magnussen
- Fernando Alonso
- Lance Stroll
- Valtteri Bottas
- Zhou Guanyu
- Nyck De Vries
- Liam Lawson
- Daniel Ricciardo
- Yuki Tsunoda
Races
- Gulf Air Grand Prix of Bahrain 2023
- Saudi Arabian Grand Prix 2023
- Grand Prix of Australia 2023
- Grand Prix of China 2023
- Grand Prix of Azerbaijan 2023
- Miami Grand Prix 2023
- Qatar Airways Gran Premio Del Made In Italy E Dell'emilia Romagna 2023
- Grand Prix of Monaco 2023
- AWS Gran Premio de España 2023
- Grand Prix du Canada 2023
- Grand Prix of Austria 2023
- Aramco Grand Prix of Great Britain 2023
- Grand Prix of Hungary 2023
- Grand Prix of Belgium 2023
- Heineken Dutch Grand Prix 2023
- Grand Prix of Italy 2023
- Grand Prix of Singapore 2023
- Grand Prix of Japan 2023
- Qatar Grand Prix 2023
- Grand Prix of the United States 2023
- Gran Premio de la Ciudad de Mexico 2023
- Rolex Grande Prêmio de São Paulo 2023
- Heineken Silver Las Vegas Grand Prix 2023
- Grand Prix of Abu Dhabi 2023
About GPFans
GPFans is a multi-platform, multi-language brand dedicated to Formula One coverage. We bring you all the ins and outs of the sport, 24/7, everything from up-to-the-minute news and features to the latest viral stories and clips.We believe that a new generation of exciting, outspoken drivers will make F1 more popular than ever before, and we want to give our users access to as much of their heroes as possible, on and off the track. From Lewis Hamilton to Max Verstappen, Daniel Ricciardo to Sebastian Vettel, we provide in-depth analysis of every every Grand Prix in the season, from Australia to Abu Dhabi.
With Formula One under the new ownership of Liberty Media, how the sport is being covered is evolving, and GPFans will look to be at the heart of this progression into new media, as one of the fastest-growing sites covering the king of motorsports.
Follow us on your favorite social media channel
Corporate & Media
Innovatieweg 20C7007 CD, Doetinchem, Netherlands
+31645516860