Hungary – Free Practice 1: Hamilton and Rosberg ahead of the Ferraris at the Hungaroring

The sun shines over the Hungaroring circuit to welcome the eleventh round of the 2014 F1 World Championship. No reserve drivers in the seats on this Hungarian Friday morning. However, at Williams, a significant change: Felipe Massa has reverted to the previous version of his floor, after the other one was damaged in his first corner accident at Hockenheim.

**The session is underway!** It’s Sergio Perez who kicks off the installation laps. Max Chilton returns to the pit lane with a large white smoke at the rear of his Marussia, which catches fire and has to stop right in the middle of the pit lane. Mechanics and marshals intervene: it’s likely a gearbox problem. Shortly after, the two Mercedes are the first cars to set times. The Silver Arrows are alone on the track, already on what seem to be long runs.

Activity finally resumes in this first half-hour. Daniil Kvyat complains of a rear suspension issue on his Toro Rosso, which could pose a problem on such a winding track. On Sebastian Vettel’s side, a display issue prevents him from seeing lap times and gaps on his steering wheel.

After 30 minutes, Rosberg leads Räikkönen, Hamilton, Button, and Ricciardo. These five drivers are in 1:27. Just like in Hockenheim, minor off-track excursions are multiplying, especially for the Mercedes drivers; Rosberg is actually alone on the track, fifty minutes before the end of the session. It seems that the German team has decided to stagger its stints a bit to take advantage of a clear track. Clear yes, but not clean: as usual, the drivers have little grip on the dusty Hungarian track.

Marcus Ericsson spins at the chicane braking but can return to the track afterward. The Lotus cars are constantly on the edge in certain corners: their instability is glaring on such a demanding circuit.

After one hour, Hamilton leads ahead of Rosberg, Räikkönen, Alonso, and Vettel. Few improvements to report, as most drivers are on long stints. Fernando Alonso is driving a very unstable, very oversteery F14-T. At Ferrari, precisely, Marco Mattiacci and… Niki Lauda are in discussion. Apparently, for some apologies. The Austrian leaves the garage quickly. Ayao Komatsu, Romain Grosjean’s engineer, warns his driver that he is suffering from a hydraulic problem and will not go out again during this session.

Ten minutes from the end, a slight issue between Rosberg and Vettel. The four-time world champion informs his team: « You can forget this lap, I don’t know what Rosberg was trying to do… » At Marussia, as they were preparing to launch Chilton again, the MR03 wasn’t having it, and this start was aborted. The third attempt is successful.

The session ends with the two best times set by the Mercedes, Hamilton ahead of Rosberg. They are followed by the two rather lively Ferraris, as well as Sebastian Vettel.