BAKU, Azerbaijan, September 19. The curtain fell on the opening day of the Formula 1 Azerbaijan Grand Prix, leaving everyone scratching their heads with some surprising twists and turns, Trend reports.
When the dust settled after Friday’s second free practice
session, it was the Ferrari drivers who came out on top, leaving
their competitors in the dust. The cherry on top was when Lewis
Hamilton clocked the fastest lap, just barely nipping at the heels
of his teammate Charles Leclerc—a four-time pole-sitter in Baku—by
a mere 0.074 seconds.
Hot on their heels were the Mercedes drivers, with George Russell
just squeaking by his young teammate Kimi Antonelli by a hair's
breadth of 0.009 seconds to clinch third place. One of the day’s
biggest curveballs came from Haas: Oliver Bearman left Max
Verstappen in the dust to land among the top contenders. His
teammate Esteban Ocon also hit the nail on the head with a solid
performance, crossing the finish line in eighth, just a hair behind
Liam Lawson (Racing Bulls). Bringing up the rear of the top ten
were Alex Albon from Williams and Lando Norris from McLaren.
It’s important to keep in mind that McLaren, with their eyes on the prize for the Constructors’ Championship in Baku, found themselves in a bit of a pickle compared to the first session. Norris and Oscar Piastri both found themselves in a bit of a pickle, with Norris hitting the wall harder than a ton of bricks. As luck would have it, McLaren’s mechanics are in for a real nail-biter, burning the midnight oil to get the car ready for Saturday’s sessions.
Consequently, the inaugural day of the Azerbaijan Grand Prix culminated in a thrilling conclusion, igniting fervent anticipation among enthusiasts for heightened competitive dynamics in the forthcoming sessions.
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