Verstappen tops Austrian GP first practice

On Jul 2, 2021

Red Bull’s Max Verstappen set the pace in yesterday’s first practice at the Austrian Grand Prix, with title rival Lewis Hamilton’s Mercedes down in seventh.

Verstappen was 0.266 seconds quicker than Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc in a session made unrepresentative by the teams testing a new tyre for Pirelli.

Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz was third fastest ahead of Mercedes’ Valtteri Bottas and Alpha Tauri’s Yuki Tsunoda.

Alfa Romeo’s Kimi Raikkonen was sixth fastest ahead of Hamilton.

Behind Hamilton, Red Bull’s Sergio Perez, Alpha Tauri’s Pierre Gasly and McLaren’s Lando Norris completed the top 10.

There were reserve drivers in three of the cars – Chinese Guanyu Zhou was 14th in the Alpine, Briton Callum Ilott 16th in the Alfa Romeo and Roy Nissany 18th in the Williams.

Aston Martin’s Lance Stroll had a couple of high-speed spins – one at Turn Six and one at the final corner – but there were no crashes in the hour-long session. (BBC)