Ferrari excels, as does Mercedes, during Friday’s practice sessions at the Dutch Grand Prix.
ZANDVOORT, The Netherlands—Max Verstappen made a remark just less than a week ago following his win in Belgium, saying that he believed Ferrari would be strong in his home race. The Dutchman’s prediction was true to his word in Friday practice. Charles Leclerc led the best time of the day with a 1:12:345, ahead of teammate Carlos Sainz Jr. The Mercedes of Lewis Hamilton was third.
As for Verstappen, it was a disappointing day for the Red Bull and defending world champion. He finished eighth overall, only running seven laps in the morning due to an issue with his gearbox.
While Red Bull were struggling, Hamilton improved, as did teammate George Russell. The Briton took the morning session and finished fifth overall, right behind Hamilton. Lance Stroll extended his good luck in the top ten, as the Canadian and Aston Martin driver took sixth. Despite losing their case earlier in the day to keep Oscar Piastri from going to McLaren, Alpine had Fernando Alonso and Esteban Ocon place seventh and ninth, respectively. Daniel Ricciardo, who does not have a contract for next season, finished 10th in the McLaren.
Very few incidents occurred in both practices. Yuki Tsunoda spun his Alpha Tauri at turn 10, causing a late red flag in the final minutes of the afternoon session. The delay meant that some drivers could not practice their long runs. Perez nearly struck the wall on several occasions in the morning, while Ricciardo visited the gravel trap once but went trouble-free the rest of the day.
The weather could produce a few drops of rain on Saturday, but it looks likely that a cloudy but dry Sunday will make the drivers have a few problems. Saturday’s qualifying session will be televised by ESPN2 beginning at 9 am Eastern.
