Kicking off a promising 2024 Formula 1 season, Max Verstappen for Red Bull outperformed Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso in the opening practice session of the 2024 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, continuing his strong performance.
After securing a victory in the Bahrain race, marking the start of his pursuit for a fourth consecutive driver’s championship, Verstappen finished nearly two-tenths of a second ahead of Alonso on the Jeddah street circuit.
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Sergio Perez, last year’s Saudi Arabian GP winner, demonstrated good speed by finishing third, hinting at Red Bull’s potential to maintain its dominance after winning 21 of the 22 races in 2023.
In the Mercedes camp, George Russell outshone his teammate, securing fourth place, while Lewis Hamilton lagged behind by nearly three-tenths of a second in eighth.
The Ferrari team saw Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz finish in fifth and sixth places, respectively, with Lando Norris clinching seventh for McLaren. In contrast, Norris’s teammate, Oscar Piastri, had difficulties, ending up in 15th place.
Lance Stroll for Aston Martin finished ninth despite losing around 20 minutes of the session due to a high-speed crash into the barrier at Turn 22, luckily escaping significant damage.
As Red Bull continues to show promising performance, second practice is scheduled for Thursday evening at 5 pm UK time. It will take place under night-time conditions similar to the upcoming qualifying and race, providing a more accurate gauge of the weekend’s competitive hierarchy.
Russell, who previously out-raced Hamilton by securing fourth in Bahrain, led the pack after the initial runs on hard tyres. The 26-year-old impressed again by regaining the lead after the first runs on soft tyres, but Verstappen leveraged the circuit’s low tyre wear to make substantial improvements on the same set. Perez managed to move ahead of Russell before Alonso, following a late performance run as the track conditions improved, and secured second spot.
Saudi Arabian GP FP1 Results
2024 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, 7 March 2024
| Driver | Team | Time |
|---|---|---|
| 1) Max Verstappen | Red Bull | 1:29.659 |
| 2) Fernando Alonso | Aston Martin | +0.186 |
| 3) Sergio Perez | Red Bull | +0.209 |
| 4) George Russell | Mercedes | +0.280 |
| 5) Charles Leclerc | Ferrari | +0.371 |
| 6) Carlos Sainz | Ferrari | +0.505 |
| 7) Lando Norris | McLaren | +0.572 |
| 8) Lewis Hamilton | Mercedes | +0.577 |
| 9) Lance Stroll | Aston Martin | +0.921 |
| 10) Alexander Albon | Williams | +1.088 |
| 11) Valtteri Bottas | Sauber | +1.124 |
| 12) Daniel Ricciardo | RB | +1.258 |
| 13) Esteban Ocon | Alpine | +1.286 |
| 14) Logan Sargeant | Williams | +1.307 |
| 15) Oscar Piastri | McLaren | +1.318 |
| 16) Yuki Tsunoda | RB | +1.377 |
| 17) Pierre Gasly | Alpine | +1.387 |
| 18) Zhou Guanyu | Sauber | +1.472 |
| 19) Nico Hulkenberg | Haas | +1.752 |
| 20) Kevin Magnussen | Haas | +1.918 |
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