FP1: Verstappen tops incident-filled opening session at Baku

Reigning champion Max Verstappen topped the opening practice session at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, beating the second-placed Lewis Hamilton by three tenths of a second. F1Technical’s lead journalist Balazs Szabo reports on the opening Baku practice.

Having struggled in recent races, Max Verstappen impressed in the opening practice at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, clocking a 1m45.546 and racking up a total of 20 laps.

His team-mate Sergio Perez took third for the Milton Keynes-based outfit, with seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton separating the two Red Bull drivers.

Lando Norris took fourth for McLaren, from Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz in fifth and Oscar Piastri in sixth.

Having taken an emotional victory at the Italian Grand Prix, Charles Leclerc was looking strong in the early stages of the one-hour session. However, he clipped the dirt on the outside of the approach to Turn 15 and slid into the wall, bringing out the red flags and ending his session with 30 minutes to go.

Aston Martin’s two-time world champion Fernando Alonso set the seventh-quickest time while his team-mate Lance Stroll ended up down in P13.

Williams had a low-key first session. Having made his F1 debut at Monza, Franco Colapinto beat his team-mate Alexander Albon, with the Williams duo ending up 16th and 17 respectively.

However, the Argentinean couldn’t catch a little snap at Turn 4 and slid into the wall, bringing out the red flag. His Thai team-mate also had a little trip down the escape road at Turn 4 but kept it out of the barriers.

Having brought an extremely low-downforce rear wing to Baku, Alpine endured a messy opening session. Pierre Gasly completed a total of 31 lap, but his fastest tour was only enough for a P18. His team-mate Esteban Ocon reported a loss of power early on his third lap. He managed to crawl back to the pits, but his session was over early as Alpine investigated the issue.