Mercedes make stunning start in Hungary as Ferrari and Red Bull left trailing by nearly two seconds; Vettel, Alonso and Button all spin
Monday 25 July 2016 12:01, UK
Hungaroring specialist Lewis Hamilton set the pace in opening practice at the Hungarian GP as Mercedes left their rivals trailing by nearly two seconds on the timesheet.
Fresh from the news Hamilton and Nico Rosberg will remain as team-mates for another two years, the title contenders totally dominated Practice One as the Mercedes W07 looked in a league of its own around the newly-relaid track's twisty confines.
Ferrari and, in particular, Red Bull have been tipped to challenge Mercedes this weekend but there was no evidence of such form in P1.
Despite using the same supersoft tyres as Mercedes, Ferrari finished 1.6 seconds back in third and fourth places. On the slower soft compound, Red Bull were quicker than their Italian rivals when the times were tyre-corrected, but that didn't account for most of their whopping 1.8-second deficit to the front.
Hamilton's best lap of 1:21.347 was 0.2s quicker than Rosberg's and seven tenths of a second under last year's pole position time.
Hamilton: I'm riding the waves
Overnight rain had left the track damp for the start of the session and, although a dry line soon appeared after initial intermediate-tyre running, several leading drivers were still caught out.
Former champions Sebastian Vettel, Fernando Alonso and Jenson Button all had spins, although those excursions did not stop either McLaren driver from finishing in the top eight.
The make-up of the Hungaroring is likely to prove more favourable for McLaren's Honda-powered package and both Alonso and Button are targeting a return to the points this weekend.
Mercedes optimistic on Nico gearbox
The top half of the timesheet almost exclusively followed a 'Noah's Ark' style two-by-two formation, with Haas's Romain Grosjean the only driver to significantly outperform his team-mate, P1 stand-in Charles Leclerc, by finishing inside the top 10.
At the foot of the order, England's Jolyon Palmer endured another session to forget as sensor problems on his Renault meant he was unable to complete more than a handful of laps.
Practice One timesheet
1. Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes, 1:21.347
2. Nico Rosberg, Mercedes, 1:21.584
3. Sebastian Vettel, Ferrari, 1:22.991
4. Kimi Raikkonen, Ferrari, 1:23.082
5. Daniel Ricciardo, Red Bull, 1:23.174
6. Max Verstappen, Red Bull, 1:23.457
7. Fernando Alonso, McLaren, 1:23.935
8. Jenson Button, McLaren, 1:23.961
9. Romain Grosjean, Haas, 1:24.013
10. Sergio Perez, Force India, 1:24.073
11. Nico Hulkenberg, Force India, 1:24.120
12. Felipe Massa, Williams, 1:24.154
13. Valtteri Bottas, Williams, 1:24.370
14. Carlos Sainz, Toro Rosso, 1:24.579
15. Marcus Ericsson, Sauber, 1:24.981
16. Charles Leclerc, Haas, 1:25.181
17. Felipe Nasr, Sauber, 1:25.256
18. Esteban Ocon, Renault, 1:25.260
19. Daniil Kvyat, Toro Rosso, 1:25.324
20. Rio Haryanto, Manor, 1:27.012
21. Pascal Wehrlein, Manor, 1:27.249
22. Jolyon Palmer, Renault, 1:28.560
