FP1 for the Qatar GP was quickly archived in the afternoon at Losail. In the first part of the session, Mercedes was fastest on the hard tires with George Russell. McLaren struggled early on, with both drivers struggling to find their setup. The story changed with the qualifying simulation, which saw Piastri return to first place, followed by his teammate by just a few thousandths of a second. Lando NorrisVerstappen struggled a little, while the two Ferraris did very poorly, never even getting close to the times of the leaders.
The world championship stops in Qatar: the weekend kicks off with FP1
The Losail sunset welcomes the cars at the start of FP1 of the Qatar GP. The first to take to the track is the one who, always first, crossed the finish line in Las Vegas.: Max Verstappen. The Dutchman will have to immediately look for the right set-up for his car, given the only free practice session available in view of the sprint qualifications this evening. Meanwhile, however, less than ten minutes before the start of the rehearsals, all the drivers have left the pits. In fact, the big challenge will be to deal with tyre degradation, which here in Qatar is truly impressive. It's no coincidence that the FIA has imposed mandatory pit stops every 25 laps on the teams.
Meanwhile on the track, after a fifteen minute session, the first half belongs to George Russell's Mercedes, who is running on hard tyres like all the other drivers. Behind him is Carlos Sainz, followed by Piastri, Hadjar and Alonso. Leclerc, Verstappen, Antonelli, and Hamilton rounded out the top ten. The English driver's lead didn't last long, as he was overtaken first by his teammate, then by Alonso, and finally by Max Verstappen. The Dutchman, among other things, he complained about the slippery approach of the rubber on the asphalt, while he apparently noticed some abnormal behavior on his steering wheel. However, everything turns out for the four-time world champion.
On hard tyres McLaren seems to be struggling, while the two Mercedes are doing better
Just over twenty minutes from the green light, Nico Hulkenberg he returned to the pits. Now, however, his Sauber is raised on stands, with the mechanics working on it. His free practice sessions appear to have been put on hold for now. In the meantime, Leclerc tries to improve on the fastest lap, although still with hard tyres, but a long one takes him off the track and he is forced to postpone his intentions. The Monegasque, quite frustrated on the radio, He stressed to his engineer how he couldn't feel the car's balance through the feedback he received from his steering wheel. On the track, among other things, there is a significant traffic problem, as well as grip problems. In fact, some drivers slowed each other down during the first half hour of testing.
The two McLarens are in difficulty, having made important setup changes after a first stint on hard tyresBoth Piastri and Norris have had numerous off-track excursions and are currently in ninth and eleventh place, with Liam Lawson separating them. Despite some dumping problems, Max Verstappen, who previously shared the lead with George Russell, seems more at ease, or rather the leader with 25 minutes to go. Mercedes, on the other hand, seems to have found the right feeling with the set-up. In fact, unlike McLaren who are still testing different set-ups, the Silver Arrows are trying their hand at simulating race pace. Ferrari had a complicated FP1 in Qatar: Leclerc was 14th while Hamilton remained in 12th place. The Englishman, among other things, was the protagonist of many off-track excursions, which fortunately had no consequences other than the aborting of the laps themselves.
Final minutes dedicated to the qualifying simulation: Ferrari did poorly
The cars return to the pits fifteen minutes from the end of FP1 at the Qatar GP. At Losail the riders are about to change tyres to prepare for the qualifying simulation, ahead of this afternoon's sprint qualifyingAfter the first attempts, the fastest was Fernando Alonso, followed by the two Williams of Albon and Sainz. The latter also confirmed their speed in the previous stints on hard tyres.In any case, all three climb four places, as Norris takes the lead, followed by Piastri and Verstappen. Charles Leclerc also tries to make his presence felt up front, finishing just one second behind the leader in the standings, Only finishing in 11th place. Apparently, the Monegasque driver had no feeling for his car, so much so that he didn't even want to take to the track for the qualifying simulation.
Hamilton fared slightly better, finishing eighth and eight tenths off the top of the timesheets.With three minutes to go in FP1 in Qatar, Oscar Piastri set a good time, overtaking his teammate for first place. Meanwhile, Carlos Sainz also made a comeback, improving his time to fourth and posting the fastest time in the middle sector. Hulkenberg also returned to the track, after the modifications to which his car was subjectedThe future Audi driver is currently eighth, a position that, however, is taken away first by Stroll and then by an increasingly breathless Charles Leclerc.
At 15.30pm Italian time the session ends with the best time was set by Oscar Piastri, who clocked a 1:20.924 on red tyres. 58 thousandths away Land Norris. Third Alonso, then Sainz, Hadjar, Verstappen only sixth, Albon, Leclerc, Stroll, and Antonelli rounded out the top ten. Hamilton was only 12th, while Russell was 14th, having failed to set a competitive lap during the qualifying simulation.
