Tag: free practice one

F1 2017: Belgian Gp First Practice Report – Raikkonen On Top

Kimi Raikkonen topped the first free practice session in his Ferrari ahead of Sunday’s Belgian grand prix.

Formula 1 resumed after a month long shut down with a 90 minute practice session around the legendary Spa-Francorchamps circuit. It was Ferrari’s Kimi Raikkonen who topped the session with a quickest lap time of 1:45:502 set on the Ultrasoft compound tyre. Meanwhile Hamilton was second quickest but set his fastest lap of the session on the yellow-walled soft tyre. Sebastian Vettel, Max Verstappen, and Daniel Ricciardo rounded out the top five.

The session was red-flagged early on when the Williams of Felipe Massa ended up in the barriers on the exit of Malmedy. So extensive was the damage to the Williams that the team are opting to change the chassis. Pascal Wehrlein in the Sauber had his own reliability issues which allowed him to complete only 13 laps in the session. Later Valtteri Bottas inflicted some damage on his Mercedes as he strangely drifted off the track and into the barrier.

Fernando Alonso’s session was underscored with an underperforming engine. The Honda engine in Alonso’s McLaren is a new spec, specifically version 3.6. Meanwhile, local driver Stoffel Vandoorne, who was tenth quickest in the session, will drop 35 places on Sunday’s starting grid due to power unit element changes.

Final Standings Free Practice One:

August 25, 2017
F1 2015: Japanese GP First Free Practice Report – Sainz Quickest In Wet

Toro Rosso driver Carlos Sainz set the quickest time in a rain-hit first free practice session in Japan.

Roughly and and a half hours before the start of the first free practice session in Japan the heavens opened and drenched the Suzuka circuit. As usual it did nothing to dampen the spirit of the Japanese fans who turned up in large numbers to get a glimpse of Formula 1.

The initial part of the session remained quiet as team waited out the worst of the condition. As the predication for the rest of the weekend looks decidedly more sunny there wasnt a whole to gain by running in the wet conditions. However, the weather around these parts has been known to be quite volatile in the past and whatever the prediction there is always a chance of inclement weather.

As a result all cars eventually ventured out onto circuit which dried enough towards the end of the session for intermediate tyres to be used. Ferrari’s Kimi Raikkonen set the most laps at fifteen followed closely by Mercedes’ Nico Rosberg with fourteen laps.

Spanish driver Carlos Sainz set the fastest time of the one and a half hour session ahead of Red Bull’s Dannil Kvyat. Nico Rosberg, Sebastian Vettel and Lewis Hamilton completed the top five.

One of the biggest stories, stemming from yesterday, was that the Lotus team had been locked out of its hospitality area as a result of some “unpaid bills.” It’s made for a rather uncomfortable start to the weekend for the team and its drivers whose engineers had to stop off at a famous burger joint for breakfast. Here’s hoping this issue is resolved before long.

Final free practice 1 standings:

September 25, 2015
F1 2014: Free Practice 1 Report – Rosberg Tops In Brazil

Mercedes’ Nico Rosberg topped the timing sheets at the end of the first free practice session ahead of Sunday’s Brazilian grand prix.

The German driver was roughly two tenths faster than his championship rival and teammate Lewis Hamilton. Toro Rosso’s Daniil Kvyat set the third fastest timing in overcast conditions nearly a second off the leading Mercedes.

The newly re-surfaced track delivered little grip in the opening part of the one and a half hour session which resulted in several spins for various drivers. Force India’s Spanish reserve driver Daniel Juncadella was unable to limit his excursion just to a spin and made solid contact with the barriers. The Force India’s left-front suspension seemed to take the brunt of the impact as the driver exited the car uninjured. The incident brought out the red flag in order to safely recover the damaged car.

Ferrari’s Fernando Alonso completed thirty laps in his session and clocked the fourth fastest time ahead of local hero Felipe Massa in fifth. An ERS issue kept Jenson Button from setting a flying lap during the first free practice session. Similarly Sauber’s Esteban Gutierrez was able to complete only a handful of installations laps due an electrical problem.

Max Verstappen continued his preparation for 2015 by setting the sixth fastest time overall in the session ahead of Lotus’ Pastor Maldonado and Ferrari’s Kimi Raikkonen. McLaren’s Kevin Magnussen and Red Bull’s Daniel Ricciardo rounded out the top ten.

November 7, 2014
Susie Wolff Gets FP1 Outings In 2014

Susie Wolff is set to break the 22 year long wait for a woman in Formula 1.

The Williams F1 team confirmed earlier that Wolff would continue her role as development driver alongside new signing Felipe Nasr. Wolff has tested for the Williams team on several previous ocassions including a run in the revamped young drivers test last season.

The team confirmed that Wolff will take to the track in two free practice one sessions in the 2014 season with Silverstone and Hockenheim the circuits of choice. She will also complete a days running during one of the eight in-season testing days.

“I’m grateful for the support and belief Williams continue to show in me and 2014 promises to be a very important milestone in my career,” said Wolff.

“Competing in two FP1 sessions, alongside an additional full test day this season will be a big step and I am looking forward to the opportunity to get behind the wheel of the FW36 on a grand prix weekend.”

Wolff will become the first woman in more than two decades to take part in a grand prix weekend.

February 25, 2014