Lewis Hamilton was the fastest ahead of Max Verstappen in this first free practice session in Formula 1 history in Jeddah.
Max Verstappen wasted no time to take its marks on the new track in Jeddah. The narrowness of the track, the little clearance and the total discovery were not cold in the eyes of the Dutchman who has pushed his Red Bull to the edge of the track. Unlike him, his teammate fared less. Sergio Pérez was transparent in this first session. No rhythm and no confidence, that’s all we can remember for the moment.
On the side of Mercedes, the pilots took more time before hitting the track. What did not prevent them from immediately set the pace to compete with Max Verstappen. In the end, the gaps are quite tight, but the German team is leading with a breath, for the moment …
Among the surprises, we find Pierre Gasly, although it is no longer one. French always impresses by positioning itself just behind the top names every Grand Prix weekend. No matter the track or the shape of his car, he always finds a way to make it work to present himself as the best of the rest. To the list, we can also add Antonio Giovinazzi. The Alfa Romeo driver clearly dominated Kimi Raikkonen by finishing in 5th position, for his penultimate Grand Prix for the team.
Conclusion, we feared the first laps of the wheels on this unprecedented track. Eventually, the pilots managed to tame the Saudi serpentine. The asphalt of the latter was notably much less dusty and less abrasive than expected..
Ranking
- Lewis Hamilton – Mercedes
- Max Verstappen – Red Bull
- Valtteri Bottas – Mercedes
- Pierre Gasly – Alpha Tauri
- Antonio Giovinazzi – Alfa Romeo
- Carlos Sainz – Ferrari
- Charles Leclerc – Ferrari
- Daniel Ricciardo – McLaren
- Fernando Alonso – Alpine
- Sebastian Vettel – Aston Martin
- Sergio Pérez – Red Bull
- Esteban Ocon – Alpine
- Lando Norris – McLaren
- Lance Stroll – Aston Martin
- Yuki Tsunoda – Alpha TAuri
- Kimi Raikkonen – Alfa Romeo
- George Russell – Williams
- Mick Schumacher – Haas
- Nicholas Latifi – Williams
- Nikita Mazepin – Haas
Photo : Icon Sport
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