Lando Norris set the pace in the opening practice session of the 2024 Dutch Grand Prix, leading the pack during a session marked by shifting track conditions after early rainfall.
Four weeks after Formula 1’s last pre-summer break race in Belgium, the second half of the season began with wet and windy weather as FP1 kicked off in Zandvoort at 12:30 local time. The challenging conditions meant that teams were in no hurry to send their cars out onto the track.
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Pierre Gasly was the first to venture out, using wet weather tyres on his Alpine, shortly after it was announced that his teammate for 2025 will be the team’s current reserve driver, Jack Doohan.
While Gasly described the conditions as “pretty wild,” Nico Hulkenberg experienced it firsthand when he locked up and skidded his Haas across the gravel before rejoining the circuit. Others were also testing the limits, including Robert Shwartzman, who was driving Valtteri Bottas’ Sauber as a rookie during the session.
Despite the rain subsiding 10 minutes into the session, the wind and standing water continued to pose significant challenges as the hour progressed. Nico Hulkenberg again ran off the circuit, with his VF-24 seemingly struggling, while others kicked up spray as the track conditions gradually improved.
Max Verstappen experienced a spin as he was among the first to switch to intermediate tyres, briefly bringing out the yellow flags. However, the Dutchman quickly recovered and topped the timesheets before being overtaken by George Russell, who was also on intermediates.
As the track dried further, drivers began pushing harder, leading to more off-track excursions. Some took a gamble on slick tyres in the final 10 minutes, including Lando Norris, who promptly set the fastest lap, three seconds quicker than his previous effort on intermediates.
Norris didn’t hold the top spot for long, though, as lap times rapidly improved with most drivers switching to slicks. After a flurry of fast laps and traffic on the track, Norris reclaimed P1 with a time of 1m 12.322s on soft tyres, finishing 0.201s ahead of Verstappen’s Red Bull.
Lewis Hamilton secured third fastest for Mercedes, with Carlos Sainz in fourth after running medium tyres on his Ferrari. Russell finished fifth, followed by Alex Albon in an impressive sixth for Williams and Oscar Piastri in seventh for McLaren.
The Haas duo of Hulkenberg and Kevin Magnussen took eighth and ninth, respectively, while Zhou Guanyu completed the top 10 in the Alfa Romeo. This placed him ahead of Aston Martin’s Lance Stroll, Red Bull’s Sergio Perez, Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc, Yuki Tsunoda in the RB, and Fernando Alonso’s Aston Martin, who filled positions 11 through 15.
Robert Shwartzman concluded his session for Sauber in P16, ahead of Williams’ Logan Sargeant in P17 and Alpine’s Esteban Ocon in P18. Daniel Ricciardo placed 19th for RB, while Pierre Gasly finished at the back in 20th.
Dutch GP FP1 Results
2024 Dutch Grand Prix FP1, 24 August 2024
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