In the initial practice session at Imola, Charles Leclerc established the fastest time.
Here are the complete results from the first practice session at Imola, ahead of this weekend’s Emilia Romagna Grand Prix.
During the first practice session at Imola, Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc achieved the quickest time. The session was momentarily halted by a red flag in the early stages due to a stoppage caused by Williams’ Alex Albon.
After two consecutive Sprint weekends, the regular weekend format has resumed, and during the practice session, some cars were equipped with aero rakes to collect data on the upgrades introduced for this weekend, as well as those implemented in the recent Chinese and Miami Grands Prix.
After driving over the kerbing at Acqua Minerali, Albon’s car unexpectedly switched off and he had to stop on the track. Williams will investigate this issue after the session.
Leclerc established the leading time of 1:16.990, surpassing Mercedes’ George Russell by a little over a tenth of a second, while Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz secured third place.
After their Miami defeat, Red Bull aimed to make a comeback and managed to secure fourth and fifth positions with Perez and Verstappen, respectively.
Verstappen was on a late flying lap and seemed poised to narrowly secure the fastest time. However, he made a mistake at Variante Alta, causing him to swiftly veer across the grass at a high velocity.
The Dutch driver cautiously completed one lap without any damage before picking up speed again. He quickly achieved the fastest time in Sector One, but unfortunately, he slid off the track at Acqua Minerali and had to abandon his lap. The Red Bull car did not provide the grip that the Dutch driver desired, causing him to express his frustration by hitting the steering wheel.
During the session, Perez was issued a speeding fine for exceeding the speed limit by 8.9km/h, while Lando Norris, the victorious participant of the Miami Grand Prix, secured the eighth position for McLaren.
AlphaTauri’s Yuki Tsunoda secured the sixth position, while Lewis Hamilton from Mercedes finished in seventh place. The renowned seven-time F1 World Champion encountered a spin while exiting Acqua Minerali during one of his flying laps.
More on the latest Imola Grand Prix F1 news:
Emilia Romagna GP: Ferrari upgrades fire Charles Leclerc to P1 as Max Verstappen struggles in FP1
FIA reveal extensive list of big Red Bull and Ferrari upgrades at Imola
First Practice (FP1) Results – 2024 Emilia Romagna Grand Prix
- Charles Leclerc Ferrari 1:16.990
- George Russell Mercedes +0.104
- Carlos Sainz Ferrari +0.130
- Sergio Perez Red Bull +0.243
- Max Verstappen Red Bull +0.250
- Yuki Tsunoda RB +0.398
- Lewis Hamilton Mercedes +0.418
- Lando Norris McLaren +0.612
- Oscar Piastri McLaren +0.817
- Fernando Alonso Aston Martin +0.877
- Pierre Gasly Alpine +0.915
- Lance Stroll Aston Martin +1.082
- Daniel Ricciardo RB +1.152
- Esteban Ocon Alpine +1.622
- Oliver Bearman Haas +1.677
- Valtteri Bottas Sauber +1.837
- Zhou Guanyu Sauber +2.139
- Logan Sargeant Williams +2.911
- Alex Albon Williams +3.060
- Nico Hulkenberg Haas +4.069
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