Alonso, third, is excited about Mercedes waking up and waiting for Red Bull

The time has come for the all-important free training session. The temperature and track conditions are the same as those drivers will encounter during qualifying and on Sunday’s race. So this is an important time for the future of the weekend. And the one who took advantage of it the most was the Mercedes led by Lewis Hamilton but there is Fernando Alonso stuck in his wake. The big doubt is red bullwho a priori did not show all his cards.

From the first moment the drivers started on the soft rubber to take advantage of every minute of the session. Fastest at the start was Lewis Hamilton followed by Fernando Alonso who finished second on his first attempt, less than three tenths behind the Briton, who clocked a 1.30.751.

In the middle of the session it was time to start the classification simulation and Lewis Hamilton was fastest again. The British recorded 1.30.374. The most positive thing for the Briton was that his rivals tried to lower his time in the second attempt but he was the only one to do so. And to end the good feeling with Mercedes, the closest was MrGeorge Russell at 0.206 tenths.

After only two silver arrows, the Spaniards arrived. Alonso He had great sensations on the board Aston Martin posting two good times in his two takedown attempts. And as far as his race pace was concerning, he was also promising. He was 286 thousandths behind Hamilton’s time.

Sainz finished fourth best Ferrari If so Leclerc He turned in his attempted fastest lap and finished ninth, more than seven tenths back. The most positive thing for those Maranello It seems that the degradation problems that became the test of 2023 have been forgotten.

Very few believe in Red Bull

The big unknown is what will happen red bull. They are the favorites but Verstappen He finished sixth, nearly half a second behind. hamilton. The racing pace, however, is the most consistent. So tomorrow they are expected to be at the top for reference.

But the result was more careful Sergio Perez who ended up closing the Top10 0.741 behind Hamilton

Those who seem to finally hit the key from the beginning are McLaren. Norris He finished last on the time table but because he made a mistake in his fast lap simulation. The pace of the race from Woking was competitive. In addition, they are also present in the corner. You just have to see that Piastre He finished fifth, four tenths behind Lewis.

Another big surprise is Hulkenberg, who placed seventh with Haas, half a second off the best time. The German was just ahead of Aston Martin by Lance Strolling.

In progress*