#AbuDhabiGP FP1: @GeorgeRussell63 pips @FelipeDrugovich by 0.288s. #F1

Russell Abu Dhabi GP FP1 – Mercedes’ George Russell pipped Aston Martin reserve Felipe Drugovich to end the opening FP1 session at the Abu Dhabi GP quickest as AlphaTauri’s Daniel Ricciardo completed the top three.

Russell posted the benchmark of a 1:26.072 on the red-marked C5 softer compounds and was 0.288 seconds quicker than Drugovich as Ricciardo was a further 0.361 adrift in third.

The opening practice session featured 10 regular drivers making way for rookies, as teams except for Scuderia AlphaTauri, which kept regular drivers Yuki Tsunoda and Daniel Ricciardo in their Honda-RBPT-powered AT04 entries still running their Las Vegas livery, completed their rookie practice requirement running this campaign.

For Constructor’s Champions Red Bull to do this, Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez needed to make way, with 2023 FIA Formula E World Champion and development driver Jake Dennis and Isack Hadjar taking over piloting the RB19’s for the opening one-hour session of running at the final round of the season.

Russell dominated the early proceedings, the Briton took the benchmark down from Aston Martin’s Lance Stroll’s initial 1:31.025 on the C4 mediums to 1:26.313 just into the session’s second 15 with a string of improvements either side of a tour to the pits.

A heap of cars, including those of Rober Shwartzman and Drugovich in Charles Leclerc and Fernando Alonso’s Ferrari and Aston Martin respectively, ran giant aerodynamic measuring rakes as teams used it to evaluate parts ahead of the 2024 campaign.

Just before the midway point, where Russell went quicker again with a 1:26.081 effort this time on the softer rubber, Jack Doohan – in Esteban Ocon’s A523 and Williams Racing’s Logan Sargeant almost collided at the penultimate corner.

Doohan was arriving at high-speed through the double-right sequence, which ends the lap of the Yas Marina Circuit whilst Sargeant prepared for his next hot-lap as the American jinked right as the Alpine reserve opted to overtake him on the inside and they nearly tangled together in an incident, which is currently under investigation by the stewards.

Towards the end of proceedings, Hadjar and Stroll had a moment at the end of the circuit’s first long straight, with the former having to move around the Aston Martin approaching the turns six and seven chicane.

Russell lowered the benchmark to a 1:26.072 approaching the final 15 – this time only going faster by a last-gasp improvement in sector three.

This effort remained as the session’s best until the end, with Drugovich second and Ricciardo rounding out the top three as Alfa Romeo’s Valtteri Bottas and Stroll were fourth and fifth respectively.

Then followed McLaren’s Oscar Piastri who placed sixth and in-front of Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz and reserve Shwartzman who came seventh and eighth in the classification.

BWT Alpine F1 Team’s Pierre Gasly and AlphaTauri’s Yuki Tsunoda rounded out the top ten.

Williams Racing’s Logan Sargeant ended the session outside the top ten in 11th and ahead of Mercedes’ reserve Frederik Vesti who took 12th and Alpine reserve Doohan who came 13th in the order and survived a close call with the former in-between the penultimate and final corners as Alfa Romeo rookie Theo Pourchaire was 14th.

McLaren’s O’Ward placed 15th and in-front of Red Bull pairing Dennis and Hadjar who were 16th and 17th respectively.

Williams’ reserve O’Sullivan finished FP1 in 18th and in-front of Haas F1 Team duo Kevin Magnussen and rookie Oliver Bearman who brought up the rear.

A few drivers were seen sliding sideways out of the last corner at a circuit where it is very hard to keep the soft tyres alive over a full tour – including Sainz, Stroll, Williams’ rookie O’Sullivan and McLaren’s O’Ward.

Cars bottoming out was also a major feature of the session, with Shwartzman and Pourchaire – in for Zhou Guanyu at Alfa Romeo – nearly losing their racers as they hit the ground through the fast-flowing corners and McLaren told Piastri it was seeing the effect across it’s MCL60’s.

All teams used FP1 to assess their initial ride height levels on a circuit that’s been resurfaced at turns six, seven, ten and eleven.

Free Practice One ended with a test of the new rain light warning systems on the rear of the cars.

You can see the full Formula 1 Etihad Airways Abu Dhabi Grand Prix 2023 Free Practice 1 Results Classification at the link: https://www.formula1.com/en/results.html/2023/races/1226/abu-dhabi/practice-1.html

McLaren extend power-unit deal with Mercedes until 2030

McLaren Racing and Mercedes-Benz today announced that the Woking based-outfit will continue to run Mercedes-AMG power from 2026-2030, thus becoming the brand’s first customer for the new 2026 power-train regulations alongside the works team.

McLaren have been powered by Mercedes-Benz since the 2021 campaign following a disappointing collaboration with Honda and three seasons with Renault, and in a previous era from 1995-2014 continuously, 2026 will mark the 26^th year of a partnership between the two prestigious marques, both have which committed to and invested in Formula One over many decades highlighting their legendary status.

“It has been a cornerstone of our motorsport strategy to work with strong customer teams,” explained Head of Mercedes-Benz Motorsport, Toto Wolff. “This has many advantages: it gives a clear competitive benchmark, accelerates our technical learning, and strengthens the overall F1 business case for Mercedes-Benz. McLaren have been fierce and fair competitors since 2021, especially in the second half of this season. McLaren’s strong performances underline the importance of transparent and equal supply to all customer teams in the sport, if we wish to achieve the goal of 10 teams capable of fighting for podium finishes.” Wolff concluded. Credit to McLaren for the quote.

Mercedes powered the first ever hybrid victory at the 2009 Hungarian Grand Prix with the Kinetic Recovery System (KERS) and has lead the way in innovation and performance since the introduction of the current 1.6L V6 Turbocharged Hybrid Power-Trains since 2014. Mercedes have powered 114 victories in 203 Grands Prix, including two for customer outfits. Throughout, customer teams have played a significant role in in developing alongside the works Mercedes team.

For the 2026 season, the sport will welcome two new power-unit manufacturers alongside the current four engine suppliers, as Formula 1 sees another shift in technical regulations. The new power-trains will see 50% internal combustion engine and 50% electrical power. This has been achieved by increasing electrical performance and rebalancing the performance of the internal combustion engine, to deliver a maximum output of over 1000bhp.

The new engines will run on 100% sustainable fuel – which will conform to the strict sustainability criteria in both production and formulation – and overall fuel consumption will be reduced. The electrical systems of the power-train will feature a single 350kW electrical motor – which is three times more powerful than the current MGU-K (Motor Generator Unit-Kinetic) component and will require the development of a high-performance battery system.

Development of the new power-trains will take place under the sport’s cost cap, designed to limit maximum technical spending on the project and consolidate the investment case for engine supply in the sport.

CEO of McLaren Racing, Zak Brown added: “Mercedes-Benz have been a brilliant and reliable partner of the McLaren Formula 1 Team. The extension signifies the confidence that our shareholders and the wider team have in their powertrains and the direction we’re taking with them into the new era of regulations ahead. We have been successful together, both in the last three seasons and when they previously powered the team, so we look forward to the success to come as we continue our journey to fight consistently at the front of the grid.” Brown concluded, credit to McLaren for the quote.

Ahead of the 2026 FIA Formula One World Championship season, Mercedes have been working on the new power-train since mid-2022 at Mercedes-AMG High Performance Powertrains in Brixworth, UK. Mercedes’ high-performance R&D has produced every Mercedes engine, but it’s also a cutting-edge facility for the wider group when it comes to high-performance electric propulsion technology.

McLaren returned to Mercedes power in 2021, since then the Woking based-outfit has won the Italian Grand Prix, which is the most recent victory for a customer team in the sport. McLaren have taken 15 podium finishes in the past three campaigns, along with a pole at the F1 Sprint weekend in Brazil, and pole and a victory at the Qatar F1 Sprint weekend this season.

#F1 @etihad Airways #AbuDhabiGP 2023 Preview. #Formula1