Australian GP- Free Practice

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Rolex Australian GP - Free Practice

Free Practice 1

March 21, 2024

Norris from McLaren takes the lead in the initial practice session at the Australian Grand Prix

In the initial practice session of the Australian Formula One Grand Prix, Lando Norris, the McLaren teammate of local contender Oscar Piastri, set the fastest time.

Norris narrowly outperformed three-time world champion Max Verstappen in Friday's session at Albert Park, indicating a promising start for McLaren in their efforts to compete

with the top teams Red Bull and Ferrari.

Verstappen, the Red Bull superstar, attempted one final hot lap in the closing moments but could not surpass Norris's time.

Piastri briefly held the top position early on, but eventually finished as the 10th fastest, just ahead of fellow Australian Daniel Ricciardo in his first race in Melbourne since 2022.

During the one-hour session, ten minutes were wasted when Alex Albon lost control of his Williams and crashed into a wall.

Although the Thai driver emerged from the accident unharmed, a tire flew off his car, and there seemed to be significant damage to the gearbox.

Australian drivers have historically struggled at Albert Park, with Mark Webber -- Piastri's mentor -- and Daniel Ricciardo never achieving better than fourth place at the circuit throughout their extensive careers.

Ricciardo notably crossed the finish line in second place during the 2014 race, but his podium finish was revoked due to disqualification.

The second practice session is scheduled to commence at 4pm (AEDT) on Friday.

Free Practice 2

March 22, 2024

Leclerc from Ferrari sets the fastest time in FP2 at the Australian Grand Prix.

In the second free practice at the Australian Grand Prix on Friday, Charles Leclerc set the fastest time for Ferrari, while Williams driver Alex Albon crashed his car in the first session at Albert Park, a turn known for incidents.

Leclerc clocked a time of 1:17.277 on soft tires during the session, outpacing Red Bull's Max

Verstappen by 0.381 seconds.

Verstappen, aiming for consecutive wins in Australia and a third victory in a row this season, had a delayed start in the second session due to floor damage sustained in the first session.

On a challenging day for most cars struggling for grip on the street circuit, Sergio Perez, his teammate, managed to set the eighth fastest time.

In the first practice session (FP1), Leclerc's lap time was over a second quicker than Lando Norris's pace-setting lap of 1:18.564 before the session was red-flagged due to Albon's crash in the final 20 minutes.

Albon, the England-born Thai driver, lost control at turn six, resulting in a heavy impact with the barrier and subsequently colliding with the opposite barrier, causing extensive damage to both sides of his car and leaving debris strewn along a long stretch of the track.

One year later, Albon had a crash at the same turn during the race, leading to one of three red flags being raised.

Despite walking away from the accident unharmed, Albon apologized over the team radio. Due to the repairs needed on his car, he missed FP2. With Williams not having a spare chassis in Melbourne, they might face the possibility of being short a driver for the remainder of the race weekend if the car cannot be fixed.

Following surgery for appendicitis, Carlos Sainz made a successful comeback to his Ferrari race seat, achieving the third fastest lap in FP2 after finishing eighth in FP1.

Mercedes had a challenging day as their early season issues seemed to persist in Australia.

During FP2, seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton encountered a problem with his Mercedes, resulting in him posting only the 18th fastest lap after being ninth quickest earlier.

While George Russell showed promising performance by ranking sixth in FP2 and third in FP1, he also faced difficulties with control, experiencing a skid off track in the early session and expressing concerns about vibration in his steering rack.

"It didn't feel good out there today," said Hamilton.

"We made some big changes into FP2 and unfortunately, that made the car worse."

In FP2, Lance Stroll from Aston Martin finished fourth, beating his teammate Fernando Alonso.

After Albon's accident, Williams faced another scare in FP2 as Logan Sargeant, who set the 13th fastest lap, went off track at the exit of turn 11.

Free Practice 3

March 22, 2024

Leclerc from Ferrari sets the fastest time in the last practice session of the Australian Grand Prix.

Charles Leclerc from Ferrari set the fastest time in the last free practice session at the Australian Grand Prix on Saturday, providing a small confidence boost before the qualifying session at Albert Park.

Leclerc, who was also the quickest in the second practice on Friday, completed his final flying lap around the street circuit in one minute and 16.714 seconds, just 0.02 seconds ahead of Red Bull's reigning world champion, Max Verstappen.

Despite an early strong performance on medium tires, Leclerc's teammate Carlos Sainz eventually settled for third place, with Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton improving to fourth position after struggling initially on the soft compound tires.

Hamilton's teammate Russell, who expressed frustration over consistently encountering Hamilton on his flying laps, set the fifth quickest time.

Fernando Alonso secured the sixth position for Aston Martin, with Red Bull's Sergio Perez in seventh and McLaren's Oscar Piastri in eighth.

Lance Stroll of Aston Martin posted the ninth-fastest time, while Lando Norris of McLaren completed the top 10.

Alex Albon, who had to switch to Williams teammate Logan Sargeant's car after crashing his own during Friday practice, experienced a minor skid at turn nine and reported that his rear tires were completely worn out.

Despite the unexpected turn of events, he managed to showcase his skill and determination by securing the 13th fastest lap time. 

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