Belgian Grand Prix – Free Practice 1: The top four within 1 tenth of a second

These are the first free practice sessions of a very special weekend. One year after the death of Anthoine Hubert, all F1, F2, F3 drivers will have him somewhere in the back of their minds. To honor his memory, a specially created logo for Anthoine has been designed and placed on all the cars and clothing in the paddock.

Charles Leclerc was the first to set a time during these FP1. Winner last year, it is unlikely that the Monegasque can repeat this feat with a Ferrari losing nearly 20 km/h on the straight compared to its rivals. A weekend and a session that were already starting poorly with two major wheel lock-ups. The first at the Bus Stop chicane, forcing him to go wide, and the second at the entry of turn 4.

A very complicated start to the weekend also for Romain Grosjean, who saw his turbo let go very early in the session. For more than 30 minutes, his mechanics tried to repair the Frenchman’s car, but there was nothing to be done.

Equipped with a brand-new car, Esteban Ocon has finally managed to unlock some additional pace against his teammate Daniel Ricciardo, who has had an advantage over his garage neighbor since the start of the season. Clearly, this new gearbox, engine block, and chassis seem to suit the Norman better, as he was 0.2 seconds faster than the Australian this morning. Now, this great momentum needs to be confirmed for the rest of the weekend and for the race. Especially since McLaren and Renault are very close in terms of performance, so every hundredth of a second counts in this mid-field battle.

Results of Free Practice 1 of the 2020 Belgian Grand Prix: