F1 News, Reports and Race Results

Russell tops washed out FP1 in Hungary – Perez crashes

George Russell topped a rain-disrupted first practice in Hungary, the Mercedes driver edging McLaren's Oscar Piastri and Aston Martin's Lance Stroll in a session that saw limited running.

It took the better part of 50 minutes for a proper lap time to be put on the board due to the wet conditions, but it only took four corners for Sergio Perez to crash and heavily damage his Red Bull.

Only 13 drivers completed a full timed lap, with championship leader Max Verstappen among those who sat out most of the session.

 

At the outset of the opening session at the Hungaroring, everyone had one eye on the menacing skies and the other on F1 returnee Daniel Ricciardo.

Conditions were dry when the circuit went green but the forecast called for rain either during the session or later in the day, which encouraged everyone to get going straight away.

It was a nightmare start however for Perez, who on his first flyer put two wheels on the grass going into Turn 5 which sent the Red Bull charger straight into the wall.

"I can't believe this", quipped Perez on the radio. In addition to ruining his crews' lunchbreak, Perez will have done his current goodwill little good at a moment in time where he desperately needs to bounce back from his dismal string of recent performances.

While the red flag remained deployed, drops of rain appeared in the pitlane. The session resumed with the field of cars heading back out on slicks but the running was short lived, with everyone heading back to the dry confines of their garages to ponder their next move.

The consensus was that there was little to learn by running in the wet, which led to a prolonged lull in the track action.

2021 Hungarian GP winner Esteban Ocon eventually gave it a tentative shot on Inters, the Alpine driver followed by Ferrari's Carlos Sainz and Williams' Alex Albon, but the trio's runs were limited to just a single lap.

Others followed suit, but quickly sought dry ground, which meant that with 20 minutes left on the clock, there was still no time on the board!

Bottas corrected that shortfall by finally completing a full lap, but the Finn was overhauled by the Williams duo of Sargeant and Albon.

Meanwhile, Sainz slipped off the track at Turn 3 and slightly damaged his SF-23. Unable to gain traction on the wet grass, the Spaniard was forced to rely on the marshals to get him going again.

More cars joined the action in the final ten minutes of the session, leading to fast and furious rotations at the top of the timing screens.

Nico Hulkenberg briefly went top before Leclerc and Alonso traded fastest wet laps. It looked like the Spaniard would have the last word but Piastri and then Russell went top to conclude a mainly irrelevant opening session.

Keep up to date with all the F1 news via Facebook and Twitter

Michael Delaney

Recent Posts

McLaren to review Sunday's fateful pit stop timing

McLaren team principal Andrea Stella has insisted that the squad has no regrets about its…

5 mins ago

Williams' Boutsen hoists the mainsail in Adelaide

On this day in 1989, Williams' Thierry Boutsen secured his second F1 win when he…

1 hour ago

Horner: Max 'answered critics' with epic Sao Paulo GP drive

Red Bull team principal Christian Horner hailed Max Verstappen’s sensational Sao Paulo Grand Prix victory…

2 hours ago

Sainz left puzzled by double crash drama in rainy São Paulo

Carlos Sainz was left scratching his head after a disastrous Sunday at the Sao Paulo…

3 hours ago

Alonso pushed through agonizing pain to complete Sao Paulo GP

Fernando Alonso braved both physical agony and mechanical challenges in the Sao Paulo Grand Prix,…

4 hours ago

Alpine double-podium in Brazil could deliver $30 million windfall

Alpine’s remarkable double podium at the São Paulo Grand Prix with Esteban Ocon and Pierre…

19 hours ago