In the initial two-hour segment of the 2024 Formula 1 pre-season testing, the reigning World Champion emerged as the quickest. Max Verstappen leads the pack early in the day’s first testing session, showcasing his speed at the top of the leaderboard.
Verstappen achieved a notable time of 1:33.065 using the C3 Medium tyres, propelling himself to the forefront after initially struggling with the vehicle’s performance on the stiffer C4 and C5 compounds.
Close behind him, Charles Leclerc in his Ferrari trailed by a mere 0.182 seconds, indicating a tight competition with the Red Bull team.
George Russell of Mercedes was the first to take to the track, managing to complete 19 laps within the first two hours, which placed him ninth in terms of speed. Meanwhile, Fernando Alonso and Valtteri Bottas had promising starts to their day.
Alonso, in the AMR24, managed to complete 32 laps, showing the car’s adaptability under his control. Bottas, on the other hand, briefly led the timings before settling into the fourth position as the session reached its midpoint.
Yuki Tsunoda matched Verstappen for the most laps completed, each clocking in 37 laps as they tested the capabilities of their respective vehicles. In contrast, Oscar Piastri had a subdued beginning with only 17 laps for McLaren.
The session progressed smoothly without any major interruptions, marked by a clean run apart from a few instances of oversteering.
The only significant incident occurred when Esteban Ocon’s Alpine encountered trouble at Turn 4, leading to a detour through the gravel and necessitating a pit stop for repairs.
