The Spanish Grand Prix, the tenth round of the Formula 1 season, represents an important testing ground for the teams thanks to its complex technical characteristics. Many technical innovations are expected for the weekend. Ferrari brought significant technical updates to compete at the top, managing to introduce them in time to test them in free practice for the Spanish GP. On the transfer front we are back to discussing given the participation of the young player Oliver Bearman behind the wheel of Haas in Free Practice 1. The morning was made even more interesting by Alpine's announcement regarding the entry of Flavio Briatore as executive advisor, a role that involves off-track duties and adds further dynamism to this race weekend. But returning to the activity on the track let's see how the teams performed in free practice 1 of the Spanish GP.
Ferrari and Red Bull are betting everything on updates in Spain
Ferrari in Spain brought a significant upgrade package. The main changes concern the bottom, sidepods and rear wing of the SF-24, with the aim of improving downforce and aerodynamic efficiency. The new floor is designed to generate more downforce without penalizing efficiency, while the redesigned sidepods and optimized “Cobra” winglets aim to improve airflow and vortex management. Since the Circuit of Catalonia is an excellent test bed on the aerodynamic front, the Maranello team wanted to bring forward the times to test these innovations. During Free Practice 1, Ferrari therefore focused on collecting data to evaluate the effectiveness of the updates and optimize the car's set-up. Carlos Sainz had the opportunity to test the complete package while Leclerc only had a few pieces.
Red Bull was not far behind, and in Barcelona they brought a new package of updates to the RB20 to maximize the aerodynamic efficiency and cooling of the car especially for this hotter part of the season. A further evolution of Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez's car. RB, Red Bull's younger sister, is also new to try to get closer to the leading group.
The program in the first part of Free Practice 1 of the Spanish GP
The first part of Free Practice 1 in Spain under the Barcelona sun sees most of the drivers on track with hard tyres. Only Williams, Haas, Zhou and Piastri ride the mediums. After 20 minutes the first feelings arrive from the riders. Sergio Perez complains of understeer problems. Remember that Perez also has a three-place grid penalty to serve. It won't be an easy weekend for him, in terms of comeback. However, the problems are not just for Perez. Charles Leclerc complains about the car, calling it "horrendous". Lando Norris also complains of little grip. The one who doesn't seem to be suffering particularly seems to be George Russell, with the second fastest time, a tenth and a half behind Max Verstappen's time.
News also comes from the pits regarding the engine change. Sainz mounted the third Power Unit, while Leclerc mounted the fourth MGU-H on the SF-24, the last one available before the penalty. Entire Power Unit instead for Max Verstappen who reached the fourth and final unit. Therefore, Red Bull is also likely to receive a penalty in the next rounds.

The second part of the session
With 30 minutes to go they take to the track with the medium Ferrari and Mercedes tyres. Sainz takes advantage of this to set the fastest time. Red Bull instead responds with the soft tyres. However, with the softer compound, Perez is unable to improve the Spaniard's time, which is instead easy for Verstappen, 4 tenths faster than his teammate and 3 tenths faster than Sainz. Ferrari is working on Charles Leclerc's single-seater which required the same configuration as the Spaniard.
With 20 minutes to go the session was interrupted for a few minutes due to some debris lost by Fernando Alonso's wing. The Asturian will contest his 21st home Grand Prix on Sunday. Once the session has resumed, several riders return to the track with the soft tyres. With this compound, McLaren therefore moves to the top of the group thanks to Lando Norris who is faster than Verstappen by a handful of thousandths. Leclerc, in the meantime, continues to complain about his car. The Monegasque is in 11th position with averages. The gap with his teammate is quite high. Pierre Gasly also complained of problems with his car and was forced to return to the pits.
The session comes to an end, here it is top 10 waiting for Free Practice 2 which will start at 17pm.
P1 Lando Norris
P2 Max Verstappen
P3 Carlos Sainz
P4 George Russell
P5 Sergio Perez
P6 Oscar Piastri
P7 Lewis Hamilton
P8 Esteban Ocon
P9 Fernando Alonso
P10 Alexander Albon