In the first free practice session for the French Grand Prix, Mercedes showed that they are still up to speed, and in particular Valtteri Bottas. In Baku he seemed to have completely lost it, but managed to recover in FP1 at Paul-Ricard and he ended up setting the fastest time on Friday morning. Teammate Lewis Hamilton managed to set the second fastest time.
Max Verstappen had to settle for third place, although the difference between Hamilton was only one tenth. His teammate, Sergio Perez, was also close behind. Therefore, this weekend looks set to be another direct battle between Red Bull Racing and Mercedes, as we saw previously in Spain and Portugal.
Behind the top teams, it was Alpine who were the fastest on their home track. Esteban Ocon drove the fifth fastest time on his new contract, while Fernando Alonso was seventh fastest. Daniel Ricciardo split the two blue cars, with the sixth time. AlphaTauri were also well placed, finishing eighth and tenth.