Australian GP FP1 Report: Ferrari Dominate Albert Park As Sebastian Vettel Faces Troubled 2022 Return

Formula 1 is finally underway in Australia. As we all know, the Melbourne event is back after two years, and it surely promises everyone a great weekend. The drivers took to the track to test out their cars in FP1 as Ferrari came out on top before they head out for FP2 later on.

The Melbourne track has a new layout as compared to that of 2019. The pit-stop width has increased from 14 meters to 16 meters while the speed limit at the pit has been increased to 80 km/h from 60 km/h. The crowd poured in to witness the first practice session of the week.

A beautiful sunny morning saw Sergio Perez kickstart the session at Albert Park. Red Bull has used the areo rake on the no 11 car of Perez for a lap. The Mexican had a part of his car break down that brought in the first red flag of the session after the 21st minute.

As per the first 20 minutes, drivers like Carlos Sainz, Lewis Hamilton, and Kevin Magnussen all locked up in turn 13. The race director meanwhile took notice of the few impending happened during the session to be looked at afterward.

The Ferraris of Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz and Red Bulls of Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez dominated the first half of the FP1. The Mercedes cars have been struggling a little with porpoising effect, which is not entirely gone. The mechanics brought in the Bahrain rear wing for Lewis Hamilton after a disastrous Saudi Arabian Grand Prix.

The McLaren cars seem to have improved their straight-line speed. However, it’s too early to say until Saturday’s qualification. The Alpine cars are back in their traditional blue after racing the first two races in BWT Pink.

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Verstappen feels confident, Guenther states American races are good for F1 while Ferraris continued to dominate

The start of the first weekend in F1 this season hasn’t been great for Sebastian Vettel. His Aston Martin started smoking, bringing out the second reg flag of the session. Seb took things into his own hand when he took the fire extinguisher to blow out the fire and smoke.

Guenther Steiner came in for an interview in the middle of the session. The American team principal talked about how three races in the United States can be beneficial for F1 as well as for the teams. Haas, being the only American team, would give them an extra impetus. Steiner further talked about how Kevin made a great comeback and how Mick is learning from Kevin’s experience.

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Max Verstappen seemed hopeful for a battle like Bahrain and Jeddah, and he sounded optimistic during the session. Carlos Sainz topped the chart, followed by his Ferrari teammate Charles Leclerc. Red Bull’s Sergio Perez took P3 to wrap up the FP1 at the street circuit of Albert Park, Melbourne, Australia.