Lando Norris Sets the Pace in the Initial Practice of the Hungarian Grand Prix
Lando Norris outpaced his championship rival, Oscar Piastri, in the first practice session of the Hungarian Grand Prix. Norris, who is 16 points behind Piastri before Sunday’s race at the Hungaroring, the last before the summer break, set the pace from the start. The British driver demonstrated his potential by leading the session, surpassing Piastri by a mere 0.019 seconds. Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc placed third, two tenths of a second behind the leader, but ahead of his teammate Lewis Hamilton by two positions. Hamilton, a seven-time world champion with a record of eight wins and nine poles in Hungary, finished four tenths of a second behind Leclerc.Hamilton expressed his discontent with his car’s performance and went off track at the first corner after a significant lock-up. RB’s Isack Hadjar came between the Ferrari drivers, while British rookie Ollie Bearman, of Haas, achieved sixth place. George Russell finished eighth, one place ahead of four-time world champion Max Verstappen, who on Thursday put an end to speculation about his possible departure from Red Bull by committing his future to the team for at least one more season. Norris’s aspiration for the world championship suffered a setback at last week’s Belgian Grand Prix, when Piastri overtook him on the first lap and secured a comfortable victory. However, Norris, who has never been outqualified by a teammate in the previous six visits to the Hungaroring, took the lead on a circuit he has declared as one of his favorites on the calendar. Andrea Kimi Antonelli, who hasn’t had a good run, as he has only scored once in his last seven appearances, felt motivated after finishing seventh, half a second behind his teammate Russell. Fernando Alonso was absent from the first practice due to a back injury. Aston Martin hopes to determine if the 44-year-old driver will be able to participate in the rest of the weekend.The car doesn’t feel right.
Lewis Hamilton
