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Mercedes on top in FP1 at the Belgian Grand Prix!

Mercedes on top in FP1 at the Belgian Grand Prix!

28-08-2020 11:07 Last update: 11:37
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Louis Shaw

Editor

Birthday boy Valtteri Bottas topped the timesheet in FP1 setting a 1.44.493 as Mercedes dominate the opening session at the Spa-Francorchamps circuit. Lewis Hamilton finished second ahead of Max Verstappen in an uneventful opening to the weekend. 

For the most part, it was a slow and unspectacular session. Teams used the time early on to put use aero rakes and gather some data before putting on the soft tyre at the end of the session to get some laps in at a faster pace. 

Max Verstappen claimed third, the spot he has got so used to holding so far this season, and looked comfortable in his Red Bull. Albon was a bit further behind but he's running more downforce on his car and will hope to be fast come the race on Sunday. 

Problems for Haas

Both Romain Grosjean and Kevin Magnussen were forced out of FP1 with engine issues. Neither driver set a time and they will hope to resolve the problems quickly so that they can get some running in FP2 later on this afternoon. Not the start to the weekend the American team would have wanted. 

Ferrari way down 

Considering it was Charles Leclerc who won at this circuit last year, Ferrari were well off the pace. Leclerc finished FP1 P14 with his four-time world champion teammate, Sebastian Vettel, finishing down in P15. They will hope to speed up but it looks like it's going to be another tough weekend for the Scuderia. With two races in Italy up next, Ferrari will be pleased fans aren't allowed to watch from the stands... 

A few wobbles

There were no major incidents but Lando Norris went wide and Leclerc also had a moment where he flat-spotted his tyre and was forced to pit for fresh rubber. There were no yellow flags and it was a clean session from that point of view. 

Mercedes on top again

It was Bottas and Hamilton at the top once again but this time it was the Finn who topped the timesheet. It was a good lap from Bottas who will hope to build on this momentum throughout the weekend. He picked up a puncture on his front left tyre with a few minutes left of the session but will be back ready for FP2 later on this afternoon.