Formula 1: Australian Grand Prix Day 1, news and results
Ferrari’s Charles LeClerc has made a statement ahead of qualifying at the Australian Grand Prix, as Williams face a tough driver decision after a crash. Follow the latest F1 news
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Hold the corks on the energy drinks, this year’s Australian Grand Prix might not be the stroll through Albert Park that everyone is expecting.
Red Bull’s triple world champion Max Verstappen remains the strong favourite to win Sunday’s Formula One race because his car is still faster than everyone else’s, but Ferrari have at least thrown down the challenge.
Charles Leclerc, who won in Melbourne two years ago and has shown a few signs he’s starting to close the gap, upstaged his Dutch rival to set the fastest time in Friday’s final practice.
No one ever sprays champagne after practice sessions but LeClerc’s impressive pace will at least remind Verstappen that if he does slip up, the prancing horse will be ready to pounce.
“It was a solid first day, everything felt good from the start and I was comfortable in the car,” Leclerc said.
“The most important thing for us to do will be to go with the track and anticipate what the evolution will be like. We will focus on optimising our balance and try to make a step forward before qualifying.
“It looks good for now but we have to wait and see how it will look (on Saturday), I expect the field to be much tighter.”
Unusually for Verstappen, he did make a rare mistake on Friday, badly damaging the chassis and the floor of his race car when he slid off the track during the first of the two practice sessions.
The Red Bull mechanics immediately went to work to repair the damage but it took longer than expected, forcing Verstappen to miss a third of the last practice session, when the cars were pushing to the limit on soft tyres.
When did get on the track, Verstappen still managed to post the second fastest time, splitting the Ferraris of Leclerc and Carlos Sainz, who was back behind the wheel after missing the last round in Saudi Arabia.
“Unfortunately a little bit messy because of what happened in FP1. I went wide, damaged the floor and also the chassis. It took a little bit longer to fix that unfortunately so I lost about 20 minutes,” Verstappen said.
“I do think the turnaround was very quick, what we did as a team, so I more or less completed the program still. Long run, I would have liked maybe a few more laps but with missing 20 minutes, that’s how it goes.
“I think it was all right. I think Ferrari is quick but I think from our side, there are also a few more things that we can fine tune. So nothing crazy, nothing worrying, I think we just need to fine tune the car a little bit.”
Verstappen wasn’t alone in finding trouble on the twisting Melbourne circuit, with Thai driver Alex Albon destroying his Williams after a high-speed crash during the first practice run.
Although he walked away unhurt after slamming his car into a wall which led to the session being red flagged, Albon’s car was a wreck, with debris scattered all over the road.
The damage was so bad that Williams team principal James Vowles said it was possible the struggling British team might only enter one car in Sunday’s race because they don’t have enough spare parts.
“It was a fairly big accident. The engine is damaged, the gearbox is split in two, and the chassis is damaged,” Vowles said.
“It’s the worst you could have ever had. We do not have a third chassis here. So, now it’s just whether we can repair this one.”
The Aston Martins of Lance Stroll and Fernando Alonso showed good speed to be fourth and fifth fastest with George Russell’s sixth in his Mercedes.
Less than a second separated the top 10 but that did not include seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton, who struggled for pace and dropped back to 18th after the Mercedes team gambled on an experiment that went wrong.
“We went through a really dramatic set-up change with Lewis and that has massively backfired,” Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff said.
“If I said I wasn’t frustrated, it would not be the truth. Certainly we are, because we’re trying so hard in all directions, but we don’t seem to have found that silver bullet yet which helps us to move in the right direction.”
TOP 5 TIMES
1. Charles LeClerc, Ferrari: 1:17.277
2. Max Verstappen: Red Bull: 1:17.658
3. Carlos Sainz, Ferrari: 1:17.707
4. Lance Stroll, Aston Martin: 1:17.822
5. Fernando Alonso, Aston Martin: 1:17.912
AS IT HAPPENED
WILLIAMS FACES TOUGH DRIVER DECISION
Williams driver Alex Albon is out of practice two after crashing during the opening session on Friday afternoon.
Albon crashed into a wall coming out of turn seven during practice one, which significantly damaged the car.
Sky Sports F1 have reported the car suffered damage to every corner of the car with gearbox damage as well.
The team is currently assessing the car and aims to fix the car ahead of practice three and qualifying on Saturday.
Reports indicate the damage is so severe the vehicle requires a new chassis - but none are available in the country.
There is potential for Albon to replace fellow Williams driver Logan Sargeant, who himself lost control during the second practice session and returned to the pits.
NORRIS SETS PACE IN PRACTICE
Lando Norris has claimed the first bragging rights of the weekend, setting the fastest time in the first practice session at the Australian Grand Prix.
Norris set a time of 1:18.564 to be first ahead of Red Bull’s Max Verstappen and Mercedes’ George Russell.
Just 0.07 of a second separated the top seven drivers.
The session was marred with a red flag after Williams driver Alex Albon hit the wall coming out of turn seven with around 20 minutes to go.
Albon’s team now faces a long afternoon to rebuild the car after extensive damage was suffered to the left and right side of the car.
It forced the session to be stopped for 10 minutes while marshalls cleaned up the track.
Australians Oscar Piastri and Daniel Ricciardo were 10th and 11th respectively in the session.
Piastri did a time of 1:18.918 with Ricciardo doing a time of 1:19.274.
WILLIAMS DRIVER COMES UNSTUCK AT ALBERT PARK
Williams driver Alex Albon has brought out the first red flag of the Australian Grand Prix at Albert Park in the opening practice session.
Albon lost control of his car, coming out of turn seven, and made heavy contact with the wall on the right of the track before moving to the left hand side wall and also hitting it as his car came to a stop.
The accident happened with about 20 minutes to go in the session.
Albon’s car has suffered significant damage with the team now facing a tough afternoon ahead to get it prepared for the second practice session later this afternoon.
McLaren’s Lando Norris had set the fastest time with a 1:18.564 when the red flag came out.
The session will resume at 1.21pm AEDT time with nine minutes left for teams to set times during the first practice.
TEAM RICCIARDO? TEAM PIASTRI? EITHER WAY IT WILL COST
By Rebecca Williams
Are you team Daniel Ricciardo? Or team Oscar Piastri?
Or, will you be cheering on Max or the Ferraris at the Australian Formula 1 Grand Prix?
No matter which driver fans will be cheering on at Albert Park this weekend, they are going to need their credit card to deck themselves out in their favourite team’s gear.
Donning the RB colours of Ricciardo or Piastri’s McLaren papaya will not come cheap for race fans trackside.
In one of the main merchandise stalls at the track, an RB polo was priced at $190 while a t-shirt featuring Ricciardo’s name on the back was $120.
Supporting Piastri didn’t come any cheaper with a McLaren polo displaying the hometown hero’s name on the back selling for $170 and a replica team t-shirt for $140.
But if the weather at Albert Park turned chilly and fans needed to buy a jacket, they would need to fork out $330 for a McLaren soft shell design.
What about if you want to kit yourself out like Red Bull’s world champion, Max Verstappen?
A Red Bull polo will set you back $170, a t-shirt $140 and a hooded jacket $240.
A t-shirt in Ferrari’s red was $140 and a scoop-neck sweater in Scuderia’s famous colour was selling for $220.
If the polos and jackets were too pricey, even a team cap will cost fans $90.
Despite the price of team merchandise, there were still plenty of fans wearing the colours of Piastri and Ricciardo as the F1 cars hit the track for the first time on Friday.
Australian Grand Prix organisers said Mercedes, Ferrari and Red Bull were the top three teams for merchandise sold at last year’s event at Albert Park.
‘She is so brave’: Hamilton’s pride in legal action against FIA
Seven-time Formula 1 world champion Lewis Hamilton says he is “incredibly proud” of Susie Wolff for launching legal action against the FIA, which he hopes will create change and more transparency in the sport.
Wolff, the head of the all-female F1 Academy series and wife of Mercedes boss Toto Wolff, announced on Thursday she had filed a criminal complaint in the French courts against the FIA over the governing body’s conflict of interest probe late last year.
The FIA launched an investigation into an alleged conflict of interest between Wolff and her husband following a magazine report claiming rival team bosses had raised concerns she was sharing confidential information with the Mercedes chief.
Wolff at the time said she was “deeply insulted” by the allegations which she described as “misogynistic”, but has now taken the matter further to ensure “people are held to account”.
Hamilton came out in support of Wolff’s move on Thursday ahead of the Australian Grand Prix, saying there is a lack of accountability and transparency in the sport.
“Firstly, I’m incredibly proud of Susie, I think she is so brave,” Hamilton said.
“She stands for such great values, she is such a leader and in a world where often people are silenced for her to be standing up sends such a great message and I love that she is taking it out of this world.
“There is a real lack of accountability here within this sport, within the FIA. Things are happening behind closed doors, there is no transparency, there is really no accountability and we need that.
“I think the fans need that. How can you trust the sport and what is happening here if you don’t have that? So hopefully the stand that she is taking now will create change and will have a positive impact, especially for women.
“It is still a male-dominated sport and we’re living in a time where the message is if you file a complaint, you will be fired, and that is a terrible narrative to be projecting to the world, especially when we’re talking about inclusivity here in the sport.
“We need to make sure that we stay true to the core values.”
Wolff confirmed her legal move on social media on Thursday.
“I can confirm that I personally filed a criminal complaint in the French courts on the 4th of March in relation to the statements made about me by the FIA last December,” Wolff wrote.
“There has still not been any transparency or accountability in relation to the conduct of the FIA and its personnel in this matter.
“I feel more than ever it is important to stand up, call out improper behaviour and make sure people are held to account.
“While some may think that silence absolves them from responsibility – it does not.”
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