Fresh off his win in Canada, George Russell ended the session at the top. He was the fastest out on the Red Bull Ring during the first free practice session. With a lap time at 1:05.542, just 65 milliseconds faster than the dutch driver Max Verstappen (1:05.607).
New faces on track and problems for Ferrari.
FP1 in Austria delivered a tight headline battle between Russell, Verstappen, and Piastri. With rookie Alex Dunne grabbing attention in fourth. Performance among rookies and a few minor issues paint a vivid start to the weekend.
Several new faces were seen on track. F2 championship leader Alex Dunne took part of the session in Norris’ McLaren, being the first driver born in the Republic of Ireland to take part in an official F1 session since 1982. Dunne got noticed by setting an impressive time and securing P4 with just a couple of tenths off Russell.
At Ferrari, gearbox problems for Lewis Hamilton, who did not go beyond the ninth time (1:06.099). Dino Beganovic took Leclerc’s place driving in his second session of the season. The Swedish driver worked with the new bottom after starting with the old one, running long run tests with soft tyres and finishing P18.
Spins and struggling for grip.
Alonso‘s weekend started with a spin followed by Tsunoda, Hamilton and Ocon, flagged by yellow flags during the hour of FP1.
“That was the worst out lap that we can do. Good to do it in FP1” said the Spaniard coming real close to the barriers.
The Aston Martin driver got his first taste of side by side action while battling with Pierre Gasly down to turn 3 in the last minutes of the session.
While fresh after his exams, Mercedes’ driver Kimi Antonelli experienced the Red Bull Ring for the first time as a Formula 1 driver setting a time that left him hanging just outside of the Top 10 as he was struggling for grip.
Heading to FP2
At the conclusion of FP1, Russell lead the way as Verstappen came in second, followed by Oscar Piastri. An impressive P4 for Dunne and P5 for Gasly.
With the Brazilian driver, Bortoleto, securing P6 ahead of Alexander Albon, succeeded by his teammate Sainz, 7 time world champion Lewis Hamilton coming in ninth position and Hadjar taking the last spot in the Top10.