The first free practice for the Austrian Grand Prix took place on the Red Bull Ring, under a bright sun, contrary to what was initially planned. Like every Friday this season, the teams shared their developments.
Again, it’s Red Bull who brings a revised package. The world champion team continues to evolve its RB18 with each race, which seems surprising given the budget ceiling which seems to block the other teams more.
The Red Bull has an engine cover with new openings for cooling, but also vertical fins in front of the floor modified, to “improve airflow stability at all ride heights”. The RB18 also has modified brake shells.
McLaren features revised rear brake scoops and a slightly modified rear wing. On the Alpine F1 side, it’s a completely new rear wing that can be seen on the A522, and Williams has brought in a new front suspension.
Valtteri Bottas will receive a penalty and will start from the back of the grid for exceeding his engine quota this season. The penalty will not apply during the Sprint tomorrow, but during the race on Sunday.
A session disrupted by red flags
Max Verstappen was the first to take the lead, first ahead of Fernando Alonso, before Charles Leclerc slipped between the two men in the standings. Sergio Pérez went through the gravel but then managed to set the fourth fastest time.
The session was then interrupted due to the start of a fire on the McLaren MCL36 of Lando Norris. The Briton saw smoke in his cockpit and quickly got out. Norris is on board a new engine this weekend, and his weekend is off to a bad start as he will have to start qualifying without a lot of data.
The session then resumed, and McLaren’s problems did not seem to stop, as Daniel Ricciardo’s DRS was very unstable. Leclerc then took the best time in 1’06″650, ahead of Carlos Sainz, who came in half a second behind his teammate.
Verstappen then made another fast lap and regained control in 1’06″302, while Kevin Magnussen placed fourth. The first three, Verstappen, Leclerc and Sainz, were the only drivers on soft rubber at the start of the session.
The session was interrupted 20 minutes from its end due to the presence of debris at turn 6. The drivers were again interrupted in their taxiing, while the session is crucial to prepare for qualifying this afternoon.
Ricciardo was also still stuck in the garage at the end of the session, because of his rear wing. The Mercedes drivers moved into third and fourth place, with George Russell ahead of Lewis Hamilton, and Magnussen ahead of Sainz. Fernando Alonso, seventh, was the only one on medium tyres.
Leclerc managed to climb back to 0″255, and Russell to 0″400, but no one managed to dislodge Verstappen, who therefore set the fastest time in this first free practice session of the day. He is ahead of Leclerc, Russell, Pérez, and Hamilton.
Magnussen is sixth ahead of Sainz, Alonso, Mick Schumacher and Yuki Tsunoda. Esteban Ocon is 12th, framed by the Aston Martin F1 drivers. Alex Albon is 15th, and will have to confirm his participation for the rest of the weekend depending on his state of health, after his accident at Silverstone.
Pierre Gasly is 16th ahead of Ricciardo, Guanyu Zhou, Nicholas Latifi and Norris, the McLaren driver not having taken part in most of this session. The next session, to be followed live on Nextgen-Auto, will be qualifying, at 5 p.m.
| Pos. | Pilot | Car | Temps | Tours |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | Max Verstappen | Red Bull RBPT RB18 | 1:06.302 | 34 |
| 02 | Charles Leclerc | Ferrari F1-75 | 1:06.557 | 32 |
| 03 | George Russell | Mercedes W13 | 1:06.702 | 32 |
| 04 | Sergio Perez | Red Bull RBPT RB18 | 1:06.839 | 27 |
| 05 | Lewis Hamilton | Mercedes W13 | 1:06.909 | 31 |
| 06 | Kevin Magnussen | Haas Ferrari VF-22 | 1:06.965 | 32 |
| 07 | Carlos Sainz | Ferrari F1-75 | 1:07.039 | 29 |
| 08 | Fernando Alonso | Alpine Renault A522 | 1:07.100 | 32 |
| 09 | Mick Schumacher | Haas Ferrari VF-22 | 1:07.246 | 32 |
| 10 | Yuki Tsunoda | AlphaTauri RBPT AT03 | 1:07.296 | 33 |
| 11 | Lance Stroll | Aston Martin Mercedes AMR22 | 1:07.431 | 26 |
| 12 | Stephen Ocon | Alpine Renault A522 | 1:07.462 | 27 |
| 13 | Sebastian Vettel | Aston Martin Mercedes AMR22 | 1:07.476 | 29 |
| 14 | Valtteri Bottas | Alfa Romeo Ferrari C42 | 1:07.522 | 27 |
| 15 | Alex Albon | Williams Mercedes FW44 | 1:07.582 | 32 |
| 16 | Pierre Gasly | AlphaTauri RBPT AT03 | 1:07.592 | 33 |
| 17 | Daniel Ricciardo | McLaren Mercedes MCL36 | 1:07.743 | 25 |
| 18 | Guanyu Zhou | Alfa Romeo Ferrari C42 | 1:07.889 | 28 |
| 19 | Nicholas Latifi | Williams Mercedes FW44 | 1:08.149 | 28 |
| 20 | Lando Norris | McLaren Mercedes MCL36 | 1:09.915 | 14 |