#F1 #AbuDhabiGP FP1: @CharlesLeclerc quickest ahead of @LandoNorris, @LewisHamilton.
Charles Leclerc, #16, Scuderia Ferrari, SF-24, Free Practice 1, Formula 1 Etihad Airways Abu Dhabi Grand Prix 2024, Yas Marina Circuit, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. Image credit to Clive Mason/Getty Images. Leclerc Abu Dhabi FP1, 2024 F1 Abu Dhabi GP FP1 Results, Abu Dhabi FP1 Results, F1 Shanghai Contract Extension, Chinese GP Contract Extension.
Leclerc Abu Dhabi FP1 – Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc topped the last FP1 session of the year despite being stranded in the garage for 25 minutes at the Abu Dhabi GP ahead of McLaren’s Lando Norris and Mercedes’ Sir Lewis Hamilton who completed the top three.
Leclerc was stuck in the garage for the opening 25 minutes of proceedings with a battery problem, but immediately picked up the pace when he emerged on track.
After getting a few tours on board, Leclerc chased down then Norris’s P1 effort and the Ferrari driver posted the session-topping benchmark of a 1:24.321 on the C5 red-marked softer tyre and was 0.221 seconds quicker than Norris whilst Hamilton was a further 0.485 seconds off in third.
Leclerc also suffered a major blow with the Ferrari driver receiving a 10-grid-placed-penalty for the season-closing Abu Dhabi GP due to taking on a new Energy Store, which could place a dampener on Ferrari’s World Constructor’s Championship aspirations.
In the final FP1 session of the year reserve drivers stepped in for the regulars including F2 championship contender Isack Hadjar piloting the RB20 for newly-crowned four-time world champion Max Verstappen, Felipe Drugovich stepping in for Lance Stroll at Aston Martin, Luke Browning in for Alexander Albon at Williams, Ryo Hirakawa driving the MCL38 in place of Piastri, Arthur Leclerc running in place of Carlos Sainz at Ferrari and Ayumu Iwasa driving the VCARB01 in place of fellow Japanese-compatriot Yuki Tsunoda at RB.
Also Aussie Jack Doohan takes his Formula One debut this weekend for BWT Alpine F1 Team and replaces the departed Esteban Ocon who will take part in the post-season test with his new team in Haas.
Hamilton ended the session third overall, having been on top of the pile at the end of the C4 yellow-branded medium tyre stints during the opening 30-minutes of the session, in-front of Mercedes’ team-mate George Russell.
Alpine’s Pierre Gasly continued his solid form taking fifth in the classification and in-front of MoneyGram Haas F1 Team’s Nico Hulkenberg who was sixth and Williams’ Franco Colapinto who placed seventh in the order.
MoneyGram Haas F1 Team’s Kevin Magnussen took eighth as Aston Martin’s Drugovich who was the highest-placed rookie in the session in ninth and Red Bull’s Sergio Perez rounded out the top ten.
Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso finished outside the top ten in 11th place and ahead of RB’s Liam Lawson who was 12th, Sauber’s Valtteri Bottas who ended the session 13th and McLaren’s Hirakawa who finished FP1 in 14th at the Japanese driver conducted aero work before getting a shot on the softer rubber later into the session. Hirakawa (The Toyota World Endurance Championship driver) will also drive for Haas in the post-season Abu Dhabi GP driver test.
Red Bull’s Hadjar took 15th with the Frenchman becoming frustrated with Williams’ Luke Browning on two occasions and in-front of Sauber’s Zhou Guanyu who took 16th and RB’s Iwasa who placed 17th in the classification.
Ferrari’s Arthur Leclerc was a low-18th as Alpine’s Jack Doohan and Williams’ Browning brought up the rear.
You can see the full Formula 1 Etihad Airways Abu Dhabi Grand Prix 2024 Free Practice 1 Results Classification at the link: https://www.formula1.com/en/results/2024/races/1252/abudhabi/practice/1
Formula 1 announces five-year contract extension with Shanghai
F1 Shanghai Contract Extension – Formula 1 announced a five-year contract extension with the Chinese GP, which will see the Shanghai International Circuit remain on the calendar until 2030.
The extension follows after a successful return to China in 2024 following a five-year absence from the schedule, where 200,000 passionate fans attended the event to see newly-crowned four-time world champion Max Verstappen clinch the win in the Sprint and the Grand Prix.
In the 20 years since it’s first race, the 5.451km circuit has become a favourite amongst the drivers and fans. The drivers love the unique challenge the track provides, including the tightening turns 1 and 2, the high G-force turns seven and eight, with fans enjoying the great racing and vibrant city of Shanghai.
Since Rubens Barrichello’s victory for Ferrari at the inaugural event in 2004, the Chinese GP has seen nine other winners, six from Sir Lewis Hamilton and two from Fernando Alonso from the current grid.
The new deal marks the sport’s continued growth in China as Formula One’s popularity and audience continues to increase. Formula 1 has seen the fanbase in China reach over 150 million, with more than half starting to follow the sport in the past four years, and 50% being women.
The growth has been across all areas, including TV viewership, with this year’s audiences up 39% against the 2023 season average, and online where the sport’s following on Chinese social media has grown over one million this year, with a combined following of 4.4 million across Douyin, Weibo, WeChat and Toutiao.
President and CEO of Formula 1 Stefano Domenicali explained: “Our return to China this season for the first time since 2019 was a fantastic moment for the sport, and it is incredible to see the levels of support that we enjoy in the country continuing to grow year-on-year. Shanghai is an incredible city, and the racetrack is a wonderful test for our drivers, so I am delighted that Formula 1 will continue its successful partnership with the Chinese Grand Prix for a further five years. I want to thank our promoter for their continued commitment and passion, and I look forward to returning to Shanghai in the new year.” Domenicali concluded. Credit to F1 for the quote.
