Leclerc heads Max Verstappen in second practice
After an initial session marked by several track exits, Free Practice 2 for the Australian Grand Prix took place in Melbourne at the Albert Park circuit, with the sun still shining over Australia.
Williams announced even before the session started that Alex Albon would not take part in the practice, as the team assessed damages from a significant collision into the wall during FP1.
In fact, it emerged that the Grove-based team hadn’t brought a spare chassis to Australia… because they didn’t have one. Therefore, if the chassis is irreparable, the team would have to withdraw one of its drivers and race with only one car.
To compound matters, Logan Sargeant had several scares throughout the hour-long session. The American couldn’t afford mistakes, as significant damage to his own car could spell disaster for the team. A spin after touching the gravel surely sent shivers down the team’s garage.
At the start of the session, Max Verstappen had to wait in the garage while Red Bull changed his floor after it sustained damage in FP1. It was his teammate Sergio Pérez who set the first FP2 time with 1’20″434.
Fernando Alonso quickly surpassed the Mexican by a second, clocking 1’19″412. Charles Leclerc posted the second-fastest time, soon bested by Oscar Piastri. Pérez also managed to slot in ahead of the Monégasque.
Pérez then improved to 1’18″805, while drivers were on medium tires at the start of the session to test conditions similar to those of Saturday’s qualifying. It was then that Sargeant spun.
Lando Norris improved with a 1’18″201, before being overtaken by Leclerc with 1’17″936. That’s when drivers started to switch to soft tires. Alonso moved up to second place, and Pérez to fourth, while Lance Stroll was quite far back.
Alonso eventually took the lead with 1’17″912, and Verstappen hit the track just before mid-session. Stroll made a mark with 1’17″822. Several drivers experienced minor off-track excursions without serious consequences.
Leclerc then accelerated to 1’17″423 and then 1’17″277, with Verstappen then switching to soft tires. He and Sainz positioned themselves four-tenths behind the Monégasque, before the Red Bull driver improved, still 0.381 seconds off the leading Ferrari.
Lewis Hamilton was in a distant 18th place, seemingly puzzled over how to improve. After inquiring about Leclerc’s times, he stated, “Something is not right.”
Thus, Leclerc maintained the advantage ahead of Verstappen, who finished second for the second time of the day. Sainz was fourth, followed by the Aston Martins, then Russell, Piastri, Pérez, Norris, and Tsunoda, before Zhou and Ricciardo. Notably, Pierre Gasly was 15th and Esteban Ocon 17th. Kevin Magnussen, in 19th, was the only one not to run on softs.
2024 F1 Australian Grand Prix – Free Practice Results (2)
| Pos. | Driver | Team | Time | Laps |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | Charles Leclerc | Ferrari SF-24 | 1:17.277 | 26 |
| 02 | Max Verstappen | Red Bull Honda RBPT RB20 | 1:17.658 | 21 |
| 03 | Carlos Sainz | Ferrari SF-24 | 1:17.707 | 25 |
| 04 | Lance Stroll | Aston Martin Mercedes AMR24 | 1:17.822 | 29 |
| 05 | Fernando Alonso | Aston Martin Mercedes AMR24 | 1:17.912 | 31 |
| 06 | George Russell | Mercedes W15 | 1:17.951 | 24 |
| 07 | Oscar Piastri | McLaren Mercedes MCL38 | 1:18.077 | 29 |
| 08 | Sergio Pérez | Red Bull Honda RBPT RB20 | 1:18.090 | 33 |
| 09 | Lando Norris | McLaren Mercedes MCL38 | 1:18.155 | 23 |
| 10 | Yuki Tsunoda | RB Honda RBPT VCARB 01 | 1:18.188 | 27 |
| 11 | Guanyu Zhou | Stake F1 Kick Sauber C44 | 1:18.421 | 32 |
| 12 | Daniel Ricciardo | RB Honda RBPT VCARB 01 | 1:18.534 | 30 |
| 13 | Logan Sargeant | Williams Mercedes FW46 | 1:18.578 | 23 |
| 14 | Valtteri Bottas | Stake F1 Kick Sauber C44 | 1:18.585 | 32 |
| 15 | Pierre Gasly | Alpine Renault A524 | 1:18.691 | 33 |
| 16 | Nico Hülkenberg | Haas Ferrari VF-24 | 1:18.702 | 28 |
| 17 | Esteban Ocon | Alpine Renault A524 | 1:18.705 | 32 |
| 18 | Lewis Hamilton | Mercedes W15 | 1:18.834 | 23 |
| 19 | Kevin Magnussen | Haas Ferrari VF-24 | 1:19.275 | 31 |
| 20 | Alex Albon | Williams Mercedes FW46 | – :—.— | 0 |
Free Practice 1 – Norris tops first Australian GP F1 practice as Alex Albon crashes out
The Australian Grand Prix kicked off with FP1 under Melbourne’s sunny skies. An initially green track led to several mishaps, with the session highlighted by a red flag. On the other side of the globe, the GP at Albert Park poses a challenging prospect.
In terms of developments, six teams brought updates, mostly minor ones. Ferrari introduced a small additional fin on the pylon of its rear wing. Williams F1 debuted new rear brake ducts, necessitating adjustments to the fins around the duct.
Alpine unveiled a specific beam wing for the Melbourne circuit, and Aston Martin featured a modified flap on its front wing. RB F1 adjusted the profiles of its rear wing, and Kick Sauber slightly redesigned its rear wing.
Several drivers took turns leading in the early minutes of the session, with Lance Stroll’s impressive lap time soon overtaken by Yuki Tsunoda with a 1’20″567. Tsunoda’s medium tire lap was surpassed by Sergio Pérez’s 1’19″977 on soft tires.
Stroll reclaimed the lead with a 1’19″858 on mediums, and Oscar Piastri delighted the local crowd by taking the lead with a 1’19″381 on mediums. Charles Leclerc improved with a 1’19″337 on soft tires.
Pérez, still on soft tires, accelerated to a 1’19″238. Leclerc beat this with a 1’19″110, before Max Verstappen completed an excellent lap in 1’18″670. Lando Norris did even better with a 1’18″564.
Stroll moved into third place, while Fernando Alonso was held in the pits for a floor change after an off-track excursion. There were a few minor offs, but no significant damage was reported.
Leclerc rose to fifth while Stroll confirmed his competitiveness by setting the second-fastest time. The RB F1 drivers were sixth and seventh, temporarily the fastest on medium tires.
On softs, Tsunoda climbed to second, just 0″057 behind Norris. Several drivers had yet saved their soft tires, but George Russell also went for softs in the second half of the day’s first session.
Russell had a high-speed control loss at turn number 10, narrowly managing it. Valtteri Bottas also lost his car at the same spot, resulting in a high-speed spin.
The session was then halted by a red flag following Alex Albon’s crash in the fast lake-bordering sector. His car sustained significant wheel damage after impacts against the wall, first on the right then on the left.
A repeat of last year’s race incident for the Thai driver at the same spot, which could have been much worse given the wall impacts’ severity and the significant loss of control before the first wall contact.
The session resumed with less than ten minutes left, but drivers continued to struggle. Hamilton, Verstappen, and Pérez each made track errors, unlike Russell, who climbed to seventh.
Hamilton and Sainz made progress, as did Verstappen, moving up to second, with Russell in third. Norris finished on top, less than a tenth ahead of… Pérez, in sixth! The Mexican indeed was just 0″078 off the top time!
2024 F1 Australian Grand Prix – Free Practice Results (1)
| Pos. | Driver | Team | Time | Laps |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | Lando Norris | McLaren Mercedes MCL38 | 1:18.564 | 23 |
| 02 | Max Verstappen | Red Bull Honda RBPT RB20 | 1:18.582 | 19 |
| 03 | George Russell | Mercedes W15 | 1:18.597 | 21 |
| 04 | Charles Leclerc | Ferrari SF-24 | 1:18.599 | 22 |
| 05 | Yuki Tsunoda | RB Honda RBPT VCARB 01 | 1:18.621 | 26 |
| 06 | Sergio Pérez | Red Bull Honda RBPT RB20 | 1:18.642 | 23 |
| 07 | Lance Stroll | Aston Martin Mercedes AMR24 | 1:18.667 | 26 |
| 08 | Carlos Sainz | Ferrari SF-24 | 1:18.686 | 23 |
| 09 | Lewis Hamilton | Mercedes W15 | 1:18.771 | 20 |
| 10 | Oscar Piastri | McLaren Mercedes MCL38 | 1:18.918 | 25 |
| 11 | Daniel Ricciardo | RB Honda RBPT VCARB 01 | 1:19.274 | 25 |
| 12 | Alex Albon | Williams Mercedes FW46 | 1:19.443 | 11 |
| 13 | Kevin Magnussen | Haas Ferrari VF-24 | 1:19.489 | 21 |
| 14 | Logan Sargeant | Williams Mercedes FW46 | 1:19.519 | 22 |
| 15 | Esteban Ocon | Alpine Renault A524 | 1:19.561 | 25 |
| 16 | Nico Hülkenberg | Haas Ferrari VF-24 | 1:19.604 | 21 |
| 17 | Pierre Gasly | Alpine Renault A524 | 1:19.622 | 25 |
| 18 | Fernando Alonso | Aston Martin Mercedes AMR24 | 1:19.716 | 16 |
| 19 | Guanyu Zhou | Stake F1 Kick Sauber C44 | 1:19.989 | 23 |
| 20 | Valtteri Bottas | Stake F1 Kick Sauber C44 | 1:20.014 | 21 |
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2024 F1 Australian Grand Prix Free Practice 1 and 2 Results. 2024 F1 Australian Grand Prix Free Practice 1 and 2 Results. formula 1 gp 2024 F1 Australian Grand Prix Free Practice 1 and 2 Results
