Hungarian GP: Williams Martini outside top ten in FP1
By Andrew Hooper
July 28 2017
The opening Friday practice ession for the 2017 Hunmgarian GP would not be an overly encouraging start to the weekend for the Williams Martini team. Team drivers would finish in 11th and 15th with Felipe Massa heading team-mate Lance Stroll. The session would see both drivers over two seconds behind the quickest times set in the session. During the session the team would run with a different T wing.
Williams
Martini Hungarian GP Friday 1st Practice
Team Summary:
The Williams Martini team would come to Hungary with a few new parts for
their car as they got ready for the first Friday practice for the 2017
Hungarian GP. The first time would come from Ricciardo with a 1m:22.421.
Both Williams drivers would complete their installation laps. Ricciardo
would set a 1m:21.469 with the track quite empty. Ricciardo was on the soft
tyre as he improved with a 1m:21.212 prior to pitting. The track would go
quite with ten minutes completed. Last years pole time was a 1m:19.965 with
things looking like that this time would be quickly passed. With twenty
minutes complete drivers started to return to the track. Bottas would go
quickest with a 1m:20.912 on the super soft from Ricciardo and Lance.
Raikkonen would go quickest but Vettel would move ahead with a 1m:20.345
also on the super soft tyre. Raikkonen would improve to move ahead with a
1m:20.078. After their initial runs the Williams drivers were fifth and
sixth but they would drop down the times. Bottas was again quickest with a
1m:20.053. Several drivers would have moments with Grosjean spinning and
Vettel running wide. Hamilton was now second behind Bottas. The session
would be red flagged with an accident with Giovinazzi crashing his Hass at
Turn eleven. He would suffer extensive damage to the car. The session
resumed with Bottas quickest from Hamilton, Raikkonen, Verstappen, Vettel,
Ricciardo, Alonso, Felipe, Vandoorne and Hulkenberg tenth.
Ricciardo continued on the soft and would improve to be third. The track was
again empty with forty five minutes remaining. Both Mercedes cars would
return to the track. Bottas was able to improve setting a 1m:19.248 to
remain quickest from Hamilton by 0.409. Hamilton would close the gap to
Bottas with a 1m:19.376. He would improve with a 1m:19.095 to go quickest
from Bottas. This was half a second quicker than last years pole time.
Thirty minutes remaining an the order was Hamilton, Bottas, Ricciardo,
Raikkonen, Hulkenberg, Verstappen, Vettel, Alonso, Felipe, and Vandoorne
tenth.
On the super soft tyre Ricciardo would move up to second with a 1m:19.138
while Verstappen was fourth. Ricciardo would go quickest with a 1m:18.852 to
be ahead of Hamilton by 0.372. For Williams their drivers were eleventh and
twelfth with twenty minutes remaining. As the session drew a close we would
have Raikkonen moving up to second with a 1m:18.720 while Ricciardo would
improve his quickest time with a 1m:18.486. Hamilton was now third followed
by Verstappen, Bottas, Vettel, Alonso, Vandoorne, Hulkenberg and Palmer. But
Palmer would be the cause of a red flag right on the close of the session as
he went over the exit kern at Turn four and removed the front wing from his
car. For Williams it was not an overly encouraging start to the weekend but
the Williams team has never been quick starters.
Felipe Massa:
Felipe would be first out for Williams running on the medium tyre for his
installation lap. Felipe would pit after a two lap run. Felipe would return
for his second run this time on the super soft tyre. Felipe would set a
1m:22.197 to currently be sixth. Felipe would drop to ninth but he would
improve with a 1m:21.602 but remained ninth. Felipe had set a 1m:20.904
prior to the red flag moving up to eighth. With thirty eight minutes
remaining Felipe would return on a new set of super soft tyres. He was
currently ninth and even though he set a 1m:20.823 would drop to tenth. A
1m:20.540 from Felipe would see him eleventh. This is where he would remain
as the session finished.
Lance Stroll:
Lance would join his team-mate out also on the soft tyre. He would pit after
a single lap. Lance was also back out running on the super soft tyre and he
would set a 1m:23.392 to move up to second, if only briefly. Lance would
drop to fifth but ahead of his team-mate. Lance had set a 1m:22.026
currently eighth. Lance would drop to eleventh with an hour remaining in the
session. This would become twelfth despite setting a 1m:21.998. He was now
thirteenth as the session progressed. Lance would also return on a new set
of super soft tyres. Lance would complain of too much oversteer and was told
that he was trying to take too much speed into Turn eleven. Lance had
improved with a 1m:21.663 currently thirteenth. A 1m:21.627 and Lance was
fourteenth but he would find a considerable amount of time setting a
1m:20.974 to be eleventh, right behind his team-mate. This was a good lap
given he had eight laps on his tyres. This would become twelfth with twenty
minutes remaining. As the session came to a close Lance would drop to
fifteenth without having improved his time.
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