Source – Racingnews365
During the first practice session of the Hungarian Grand Prix weekend, Carlos Sainz set the pace. Max Verstappen of Red Bull and Charles Leclerc, another driver from the Scuderia, followed behind the Ferrari driver.
The first practice session kicked off under scorching conditions at 13:30 local time, with a fleet of cars eager to lay down early laps. Among them, Sergio Perez in his RB20, equipped with aero rakes, was testing the latest upgrades. Also on track was Oliver Bearman, making his fourth FP1 appearance for Haas before becoming a full-time driver in 2025. Meanwhile, Oscar Piastri’s McLaren remained in the garage due to a technical issue.
Max Verstappen set an early benchmark on soft tires with a 1m 19.831s lap, aiming to reclaim the podium’s top spot after two rounds of Mercedes victories. Traffic troubles emerged, notably with George Russell accusing Yuki Tsunoda of not using his mirrors after a close call. Lance Stroll described his Aston Martin as “quite shocking to drive,” while teammate Fernando Alonso tested several updates.
As the session progressed and lap times dropped, a Virtual Safety Car was briefly deployed to clear debris from Turn 12, likely from Alex Albon’s Williams. Ferrari found their groove, with Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc leading the timesheets with 20 minutes remaining. However, Leclerc’s moment at Turn 12 hinted at some discomfort.
Despite a flurry of late-session laps, Sainz’s quickest time of 1m 18.713s held strong, keeping him 0.276s ahead of Verstappen. Leclerc secured third, followed by Russell in fourth. Zhou Guanyu impressed in fifth for Kick Sauber despite earlier bodywork issues, with Lando Norris and Piastri trailing in sixth and seventh.
Tsunoda took eighth, while Stroll and Lewis Hamilton rounded out the top ten. Perez landed in 11th, ahead of Daniel Ricciardo, Alonso, Albon, and Valtteri Bottas. Logan Sargeant placed 16th for Williams, with the Alpine duo Pierre Gasly and Esteban Ocon in 17th and 18th. Kevin Magnussen, set to leave Haas at the season’s end, finished 19th, just ahead of Bearman.
As the first practice session concluded, teams and drivers looked forward to a debrief and a cool-down before returning for the second practice at 17:00 local time.
