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Lewis Hamilton kicked off the Mercedes weekend in Abu Dhabi in encouraging fashion to go fastest in FP1 behind team-mate George Russell.
It’s too early to tell whether Mercedes will be fighting for victory in Abu Dhabi, but their strong performance in FP1 suggests they should at least be in decent form.
With many teams using younger drivers rather than their regulars during FP1, and the fact that ambient and track temperatures differ from qualifying and race conditions, it means we’ll have to wait for FP2 to get a clearer picture of the relevant performances.
In FP2 there will be more emphasis on tire work, they will excel in long and short runs and the teams start to make decisions on tire strategy.
Hamilton was fastest, while Russell was second fastest behind him as Charles Leclerc was third in the Ferrari.
This is the summary of Abu Dhabi FP1 ✅🏁
Hamilton leads the way, Russell and Leclerc follow #Abu Dhabi Grand Prix #F1 pic.twitter.com/3WhrMEXr7t
— Formula 1 (@F1) November 18, 2022
Build FP1
Abu Dhabi will not enjoy the same anticipation as in 2021, when Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton – Formula 1 The championship rivals at the time – reached the Yas Marina Circuit with equal points.
From this point of view, the 2022 season finale will be less interesting, unless of course you care whether Charles Leclerc or Sergio Perez secured the runners-up in the drivers championship, which also applies to Mercedes and Ferrari in construction The Players Championship is still not won.
There was something interesting going off track, as Haas finally announced Mick Schumacher’s exit and Nico Hulkenberg’s return.
There are reports of Mattia Binotti’s exit, which Ferrari denies, and Red Bull Racing Order Controversy It remains a talking point in Brazil after Verstappen refused to cede sixth to teammate Sergio Perez.
But most importantly, this weekend, we’ll say goodbye to Sebastian Vettel, the four-time winner who retired from the sport after 299 top-flight grand prix starts.
Seb is here with his dad 😊
His final FP1 session is coming… #Abu Dhabi Grand Prix #F1 pic.twitter.com/kkW48CgeR4
— Formula 1 (@F1) November 18, 2022
Daniel Ricciardo is also leaving McLaren, but despite his insistence that he will return, we are likely to witness the Honey Badger’s final F1 weekend.
Both were great drivers and will be missed.
Abu Dhabi FP1 Conference Highlights
It is worth mentioning that FP1 will not give a clear ranking order this weekend, because the time of qualifying and race is about the same as FP2, and the conditions will be more representative at that time.
On the tire front, Pirelli has brought its C3 (hard), C4 (medium) and C5 (soft) compounds to the Yas Marina circuit.
This @F1 The team will soon be gearing up for the last Friday practice of the season, and so will we!For the last time in 2022, these are #Fit4F1 Compound works this weekend 🇦🇪#F1 #Abu Dhabi Grand Prix # Formula 1 #Pirelli #Pirelli150 pic.twitter.com/XrXDXnTEht
— Pirelli Motorsport (@pirellisport) November 18, 2022
Several young drivers will join several teams in FP1, with Liam Lawson replacing Max Verstappen at Red Bull and Robert Shwartzman driving Carlos Sainz’s Ferrari.
Pietro Fittipaldi replaced Mick Schumacher in driving duties at Haas, while Lance Stroll gave way to Aston Martin’s 2022 Formula 2 champion Felipe Drugovich.
Welcome, Felipe Drugovich 👋
Our F2 World Champion’s First F1 Weekend Experience 👊#Abu Dhabi Grand Prix #F1 pic.twitter.com/CvHj0UXLyx
— Formula 1 (@F1) November 18, 2022
Jack Doohan took over for Fernando Alonso Alpine and Nicholas Latifi made way for Rober Kubica, driving Zhou Guanyu’s Alfa Romeo, back in FW44 at Williams Logan Sargeant and accumulating super license points.
Patricio O’ward was driving Lando Norris’ McLaren, and the young driver suffered gearbox problems on the first lap of the race and was asked to pit by the team.
Pato O’Ward’s nightmare begins 😩
He was a backup to Lando Norris but something went wrong with the car and he is now limping back into the pits #Abu Dhabi Grand Prix #F1 pic.twitter.com/0q6AJbhB9D
— Formula 1 (@F1) November 18, 2022
Alwald was back on track after just over 20 minutes and McLaren had sorted things out.
Lawson had an awkward moment at Red Bull as he missed his pit lane and needed a push from the mechanics.
“Can we push? Sorry, I’m used to driving down” 📻
Liam Lawson playing for Max Verstappen forgot he needed to pit at the Red Bull garage for this meeting 🫣#Abu Dhabi Grand Prix #F1 pic.twitter.com/0bWTaRTK2D
— Formula 1 (@F1) November 18, 2022
Halfway through the race, Logan Sargeant did a great job at Turn 1, spinning and entering the barrier first.
The American was able to back up from the obstacle and get back on track with no apparent damage to his car. However, he pulled out a short yellow flag.
Logan Sargeant has a spin at Turn 1
He just managed to avoid the obstacle and get back on track#Abu Dhabi Grand Prix #F1 pic.twitter.com/xOjL8DWlhg
— Formula 1 (@F1) November 18, 2022
Earlier in the session, Alpine’s Jack Doohan reported the engine was overheating and the team asked him to shut it down immediately.
Television replays showed Red Bull mechanics working on some bodywork on Liam Lawson’s car, which must have been broken on the curb.
Other than that, the meeting was simple and drama-free, but the focus will be on FP2 later today, which will be more representative of the pecking order.
how they did it
Lewis Hamilton was fastest on the Yas Marina Circuit in the first practice session with a time of 1:26.633, 0.220 seconds ahead of second fastest team-mate George Russell.
Charles Leclerc was third in the Ferrari team, 0.005 seconds behind Russell with a time of 1:26.888.
Sergio Perez was fourth in Red Bull, 0.334 seconds behind Hamilton, while Liam Lawson in Max Verstappen was fifth, 0.234 behind the Mexican.
Sebastian Vettel is off to a strong start to his final F1 weekend, with Aston Martin sixth, 0.635 seconds behind, while driving a Ferrari instead of Carlos Carlos Sainz’s Robert Shwartzman was seventh, 0.161 seconds behind the German.
In eighth place was McLaren’s Daniel Ricciardo, 0.986 seconds behind the time leader, while Alfa Romeo’s Valtteri Bottas was ninth, 0.036 seconds behind the Finn.
Alex Albon put Williams into the top ten with a time of 1:27.840, 1.207 seconds off Hamilton’s stage lead.
FP1 Official Results
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