After a three week break the Formula 1 back on track and does it with FP1 in Baku, for the Azerbaijan GP. There, UNICa, free session sees a Red Bull, as always now, snatch the best position. We are obviously talking about Max's RB19 Verstappen which closes in front to Charles Leclerc's Ferrari and teammate Sergio Perez's Red Bull.
Red Bull restarts from first place
There is no shortage of updates from the various teams, despite the weekend format featuring only one FP1. Red Bull is the team that changes the most: the Milton Keynes team has redesigned the inlet of the bellies, increasing the area of the girth, so that the flows can feed more of the rear part. Red Bull picks up where it left off: Verstappen is ahead of everyone and Perez is close to chasing, but yet another weekend of domination is not so obvious.
Ferrari, what FP1!
Classic Ferrari for sale instead it changes but not lot: the Maranello stable presents on the two SF-23 specific updates, related in particular to the wings, considering the characteristics of the track. Important news arrives for Ferrari, indeed very important, with the second position of Charles Leclerc and the fourth of Carlos Sainz. During the first part of free practice, both of the Ferrari riders lapped on the hard tyre, switching to the soft tire at the end of the session. Very encouraged signals, with Leclerc who tried several times to look for performance, blocking twice. If good morning starts in the morning, it seems to be a completely different Ferrari with a Leclerc who could aim for pole, but it's only FP1.
Mercedes and Aston think about the race
Inside Mercedes Benz instead it was preferred to focus mainly on the race pace. In fact, Hamilton and Russell set very high times. The seven times world champion finishes in eleventh position, therefore outside the top ten, while Russell is only seventeenth. Same choice also at home Aston Martin with Alonso eighth and Stroll seventh.
Gasly risks a lot
Few, indeed very few, information comes from the Alpine with Pierre Gasly having to stop his car after only fifteen minutes. For the French team it is not good news at all, considering its participation in the afternoon qualifying he is highly at risk. Excellent indications also do not come from the performance by Esteban Ocon who finishes in eighteenth position. Problems for too Magnussen who concludes with his Haas in last place in the standings.
Now it's forbidden to make mistakes
Thus ends the only free practice session of the weekend. Now you can't go wrong: in fact we start already from this afternoon with the qualification, which will establish the starting grid of the race, which will snap at 15.00.
FP1 Azerbaijan, the results
1 Max Verstappen
2 Charles Leclerc
3 Sergio Perez
4 Carlos Sainz
5 Lando Norris
6 Nyck DeVries
7 Lance Stroll
8Fernando Alonso
9 Alexander Albon
10 Guanyu Zhou
11 Lewis Hamilton
12 Oscar Plates
13 Valtteri Bottas
14 Yuki Tsunoda
15 Nico Hulkenberg
16 Logan Sargeant
17George Russell
18 Esteban Ocon
19 Pierre Gasly
20Kevin Magnussen
