In a gripping display, Norris led the pack, closely followed by Stroll and Piastri, marking a significant day for the 20 drivers involved.
Free Practice 1 for the British Grand Prix took place at Silverstone under grey skies but without rain. Heavy showers are expected later in the weekend, but the drivers managed to run without much trouble.
Several teams brought updates to Silverstone. Red Bull introduced a new floor, and Mercedes completed its upgrade package with a new front wing, a new rear wing, and new brake ducts at the front and rear.
McLaren brought a specific rear wing for the circuit along with several beam wings to test the best solution. The MCL38 also received a bodywork aimed at better cooling the engine. Aston Martin introduced a new front wing and revised rear brake ducts.
RB F1 removed the fin on its Halo, while Stake F1 altered the shape of the vertical fins in front of the sidepods. At Haas, a substantial package began with a new floor and new fins in front of the sidepods, as well as new sidepods, revised mirrors, and new rear brake ducts.
Four young drivers took the wheel during this session. Isack Hadjar replaced Sergio Pérez at Red Bull, Ollie Bearman was in for Kevin Magnussen at Haas, Jack Doohan took over from Pierre Gasly at Alpine, and Franco Colapinto conducted his first free practice in place of Logan Sargeant.
Most drivers started on hard tyres, with the Mercedes F1 team members quickly moving to the front. George Russell set the provisional fastest time at 1’28″888, ahead of his teammate Lewis Hamilton.
Max Verstappen, whose Red Bull sported a special livery, and Charles Leclerc followed closely within two-tenths of Russell. Oscar Piastri recorded the fifth provisional time but was further back, ahead of Yuki Tsunoda.
Tsunoda triggered a red flag after less than 10 minutes of the session by running off the track at Luffield. The RB F1 driver was stuck in the gravel, and race control had to neutralize the session to safely recover the Japanese VCARB 01.
Upon resumption, Russell improved to 1’28″156, with Verstappen slotting between the Mercedes. Lando Norris experienced a stall from his car and went off-track, without consequences for the British MCL38.
Russell then bettered his time to 1’28″046, and Hamilton beat it at 1’28″043! The Ferraris positioned behind Verstappen and Piastri, while Ollie Bearman moved closer to this leading group, but on soft tyres.
Norris did no better than ninth, while Carlos Sainz improved his time and took the fastest at 1’27″925. Verstappen then went faster at 1’27″729 on medium tyres, and Russell was just nine milliseconds behind with the same tyres.
Hamilton was 0″129 back and Leclerc 0″174, but it was Piastri who impressed everyone on soft tyres with a time of 1’27″631. Behind the leading group, Esteban Ocon was provisionally seventh on soft tyres, ahead of Nico Hülkenberg, Valtteri Bottas, and Lance Stroll.
Hadjar was still more than 4 seconds off the pace of the other drivers, but Red Bull often has a habit of assigning extensive programs to its young drivers, not pressuring them for results.
Norris then took fourth place between the two Mercedes. In his next time, the McLaren driver claimed the top time at 1’27″420. Fernando Alonso was fifth, and Lance Stroll improved to the second-fastest, 0″134 off Norris.
Piastri then returned to the pits at a crawl, reporting symptoms of a hydraulic problem on his McLaren, including loss of power steering. Fortunately, this occurred in the last corner, and he was able to enter the pits and be returned to his garage. The pit lane was temporarily closed but did not disrupt the end of the session.
In his last lap, Norris nearly collided with Hadjar, who was slow in Maggots-Becketts-Chapel, and the Frenchman immediately apologized. A situation seen just before between Stroll and Leclerc.
Norris finishes at the top ahead of Stroll and Piastri, then Verstappen and Russell who did not use soft tyres. Alonso is sixth, followed by Hamilton and the Ferraris, while Ocon completes the top 10. Bearman is 14th, Doohan 17th, Colapinto 18th, and Hadjar 19th.
| Pos. | Driver | Team | Time | Laps |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | Lando Norris | McLaren Mercedes MCL38 | 1:27.420 | 26 |
| 02 | Lance Stroll | Aston Martin Mercedes AMR24 | 1:27.554 | 22 |
| 03 | Oscar Piastri | McLaren Mercedes MCL38 | 1:27.631 | 18 |
| 04 | Max Verstappen | Red Bull Honda RBPT RB20 | 1:27.729 | 25 |
| 05 | George Russell | Mercedes W15 | 1:27.739 | 26 |
| 06 | Fernando Alonso | Aston Martin Mercedes AMR24 | 1:27.794 | 27 |
| 07 | Lewis Hamilton | Mercedes W15 | 1:27.858 | 26 |
| 08 | Charles Leclerc | Ferrari SF-24 | 1:27.903 | 26 |
| 09 | Carlos Sainz | Ferrari SF-24 | 1:27.925 | 27 |
| 10 | Esteban Ocon | Alpine Renault A524 | 1:27.974 | 24 |
| 11 | Nico Hülkenberg | Haas Ferrari VF-24 | 1:28.082 | 22 |
| 12 | Valtteri Bottas | Stake F1 Kick Sauber C44 | 1:28.254 | 26 |
| 13 | Daniel Ricciardo | RB Honda RBPT VCARB 01 | 1:28.477 | 24 |
| 14 | Oliver Bearman | Haas Ferrari VF-24 | 1:28.536 | 25 |
| 15 | Guanyu Zhou | Stake F1 Kick Sauber C44 | 1:28.590 | 24 |
| 16 | Alex Albon | Williams Mercedes FW46 | 1:28.649 | 25 |
| 17 | Jack Doohan | Alpine Renault A524 | 1:28.735 | 22 |
| 18 | Franco Colapinto | Williams Mercedes FW46 | 1:29.078 | 24 |
| 19 | Isack Hadjar | Red Bull Honda RBPT RB20 | 1:29.270 | 15 |
| 20 | Yuki Tsunoda | RB Honda RBPT VCARB 01 | 1:29.864 | 5 |
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Norris Outpaces Stroll Piastri in Thrilling Race. f1 2024 Norris Outpaces Stroll Piastri in Thrilling Race
