In the Miami Grand Prix, Max Verstappen set the fastest time during FP1.
Max Verstappen took top spot in FP1 for the Miami Grand Prix, edging clear of Oscar Piastri, Carlos Sainz, George Russell and Lance Stroll as five constructors filled the top five places.
The session was briefly interrupted due to a spin by Charles Leclerc, resulting in a red flag. Fortunately, both Leclerc and Ferrari were unharmed, and there was no damage affecting their chances in Sprint qualifying.
Max Verstappen takes top spot in scorching hot FP1 session in Miami
Following the commencement of the session, Lando Norris, the McLaren driver, emerged from his garage in the extensively enhanced MCL38. The team had introduced an impressive 10 new components specifically for the upcoming weekend. Almost immediately, the British driver expressed his concern, stating, “I sense an issue. Turning right feels significantly more challenging compared to turning left. It’s incredibly effortless to turn left, while turning right requires substantial effort.”
The car has undergone significant modifications, such as a new floor, front wing, suspension, and more. However, Norris had to return to the pits immediately, while Piastri experienced heavy steering in his car, indicating initial issues with the new McLaren model. Nevertheless, the team clarified that the problem was due to asymmetric power steering assistance and not related to any upgrades.
Charles Leclerc encountered a spin out of Turn 16 in a different location. The narrow exit onto the back straight made it challenging for him to quickly recover from the spin. Unlike a black cab in London, the turning circle of a Formula 1 car is not as efficient.
The Ferrari driver’s predicament raised concerns when he encountered a red flag, causing him to get stuck and resulting in his clutch overheating as he attempted to resume, ultimately causing a significant loss of valuable practice time ahead of the upcoming Sprint qualifying later on Friday.
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Within approximately seven minutes, the action recommenced after Leclerc’s car was taken off the track. The drivers swiftly returned to maximize their laps and fine-tune their set-ups.
At the midpoint of the session, Lewis Hamilton on medium tyres trailed Sergio Perez, the front-runner, by a margin of one-tenth. Additionally, Hamilton managed to outpace his teammate George Russell by a narrow margin of nine thousandths. This showcased the Mercedes duo’s proximity to the early leaders.
In the session, Carlos Sainz secured the fastest time of 1:29.331 using the hard tyres. However, Max Verstappen faced difficulties with front locking. He seemed to prioritize race set-up by opting for a long stint on the medium tyres.
McLaren acknowledged Norris’ problem, but it didn’t hinder him from finishing just 0.164s behind Sainz in second place on hard tires. The team assured they would address his steering issue before the Sprint qualifying session later in the day.
However, even with track temperatures exceeding 50°C, the drivers opted to use the soft tyres in the last 10 minutes for a series of qualifying simulations in an effort to demonstrate their ability to perform well in a single lap.
Sainz was the first to achieve a lap time in the 1:28s, but Russell managed to slightly surpass him with a time of 1:28.910.
Verstappen expressed that the tires felt as delicate as eggshells, attributing it to the excessively high temperatures at the Miami International Autodrome.
However, as soon as the soft tyres were mounted, he managed to tap into the necessary speed for a fast lap and recorded a time of 1:28.595, narrowly surpassing Piastri by a tenth of a second.
Miami Grand Prix 2024: FP1 classification
1 Max VERSTAPPEN Red Bull 1:28.595
2 Oscar PIASTRI McLaren +0.105
3 Carlos SAINZ Ferrari +0.116
4 George RUSSELL Mercedes +0.189
5 Lance STROLL Aston Martin +0.222
6 Sergio PEREZ Red Bull +0.273
7 Lewis HAMILTON Mercedes +0.417
8 Yuki TSUNODA RB +0.461
9 Esteban OCON Alpine +0.568
10 Pierre GASLY Alpine +0.580
11 Daniel RICCIARDO RB +0.583
12 Kevin MAGNUSSEN Haas +0.594
13 Nico HULKENBERG Haas +0.719
14 Alexander ALBON Williams +0.798
15 Guanyu ZHOU Kick Sauber +0.850
16 Lando NORRIS McLaren +0.900
17 Valtteri BOTTAS Kick Sauber +1.041
18 Logan SARGEANT Williams +1.296
19 Fernando ALONSO Aston Martin +1.428
20 Charles LECLERC Ferrari +3.504
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