Hamilton and Mercedes were surprised at the start in Las Vegas and Verstappen had a poor start

He F1 Las Vegas GP 2024 It started with an unexpected message of strength from mercedes. Missing out on the fight for success in recent appointments, including McLaren, Ferrari and Red Bull ahead is the arrival in the city of gambling, the mecca of entertainment as well as sin, and the star team is like a different team. Lewis Hamilton He led both sessions held this Friday (Thursday night in Las Vegas), although with Lando Norris he was only 11 thousandths behind in Free Practice 2.

The key is in the track conditions, very specific here Grand Prize due to low temperature. The asphalt was only 11 degrees and ended up at 13 degrees at the end of the session. So, on an icy track, with very little grip and dirty, the mercedes They are more comfortable than others and better than in more normal conditions, and that is noticeable from the beginning. They did double in FP1 with Hamilton and Russell ahead and in FP2 they confirmed their bet on the biggest gaming table in the capital of snowfallits asphalt.

In Free 2, hamilton took the lead and Russell was third at 0″190. It was clear that those from Brackley should join the party which in previous Grands Prix was reserved only for McLaren, Ferrari and Verstappen.

Toto Wolff done with a satisfied face, although the second position of Lando Norris, Only 11 thousandths of hamilton in his McLaren, theoretically more fuel-efficient, should also serve as a warning to all. The Englishman’s orange car started well and was a clear contender for pole. And from there, the Ferrari question remains.

Sainz, 4th

The Italians came in as favorites here Las Vegas GP because of the characteristics of the layout, its straights and types of curves and because it is an urban track. However, low temperatures are a concern. Ferrari is the team that takes better care of the tires, but with low temperatures that are against them, because it is more difficult for them to put the tires at the right temperature for a lap, facing the time trial. In such a tight field, an early start is vital to victory.

So, yes Sainz and Leclerc If they want to win, they have to go at least in the first two rows of the grid, and at the moment, Carlos Sainz starts with them in 4th position, at 0″280, with Charles Leclerc at 0″ 488. This will be necessary to see if those in red can understand how to warm up the tires for Saturday’s classification, a weak point of the team throughout the course even in the classifications with higher temperatures.

Gasly finished behind the Ferraris, with his Alpine (6th), with Magnussen in 7th place. Piastri, Hülkenberg and Tsunoda completed the Top-10.

And Verstappen?

Max Verstappen has the first title option on Vegasbut so far, it’s not off to a good start. The Dutchman finished 5th in FP1 but in Free Practice 2 he finished very far behind, in 17th place, 2 seconds behind his teammate. Perez in 19th place. Not a good start for Red Bull on a very fine track, where it is expected that the tires may suffer a lot of grain in the race. Can Norris prolong Max’s wait until Qatar? Max will have to improve a lot, as he usually does on Saturdays, to avoid Landau continue with a few options after the American event.

Alonso, 14th

Fernando Alonso He started 7th in Free Practice 1 but dropped to 14th in Free Practice 2. Aston Martin He applied changes to the car between sessions and in FP2 the Asturian complained about rebound in his car, requesting another change to his Aston Martin’s settings. The Spaniard finished a long way off, 1.615 from the lead and his car will need to improve this Saturday if he is to aim to fight for Q3.