Hamilton Leads Ferrari Front-Row Lockout in Hungarian GP Practice

Friday practice for the Formula 1 Hungarian Grand Prix got underway, with Ferrari driver Lewis Hamilton setting the pace to claim the top spot, 0.148 seconds faster than teammate Charles Leclerc, resulting in a one-two lockout at the front for the Prancing Horse team during this session.

Meanwhile, Lando Norris of McLaren secured third place, 0.499 seconds behind the leader, followed by Red Bull's Max Verstappen in fourth, on a circuit that naturally favors the cornering performance of the Ferrari cars.

Aston Martin introduced a heavily revised car—retaining only the engine, gearbox, and front suspension—to the track for the first time. Team principal Adrian Newey described it as an encouraging initial step, despite Fernando Alonso finishing 19th, 2.990 seconds off the pace, and having a lap nearly 0.4 seconds quicker deleted for exceeding track limits at the final corner.

However, the opening day of practice was not entirely smooth for Aston Martin, as Alonso's teammate Lance Stroll spun off the track during the first practice session, initially appearing to suffer a rear suspension failure, which caused him to miss the second session as the team ran out of time to repair the car.

For Mercedes, George Russell finished fifth, 0.933 seconds behind, while championship leader Kimi Antonelli ended up 13th. Antonelli was unable to complete a qualifying simulation run in the second session after his first lap was deleted following Franco Colapinto's crash at the final corner, and he missed the second attempt by running wide at the chicane.

Source: BBC Sport