2024 F1 Mexican GP: Ferrari at the top but missing key details in FP1 and FP2
Today at 07:37 AM
Ferrari's Friday in Mexico gave the Maranello team very positive sensations. Carlos Sainz ended the day ahead of everyone, providing strong responses both in terms of single-lap pace and race pace. Bear in mind that FP2 was unusual due to the Pirelli prototype tire tests, which certainly affected the work of all teams.
However, under equal conditions, the SF-24 seemed the best in many respects, as you can read in various analyses already published overnight on our site. Both Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc are clearly satisfied, with the Monegasque driver only taking part in the second session, as he had handed over his Ferrari to Bearman in the morning.
Speaking of the young English driver, during FP1 he was unfortunately involved in an incident that prevented him from completing the session due to a mistake by Albon, who lost control of his Williams in the Snake section during his fast lap, possibly distracted by Ollie. Albon collided squarely with the Ferrari driver, destroying his left front suspension and forcing him to park the car.
This wasn't beneficial for Charles Leclerc either, though he didn't lose much time as Russell then decided to crash his Mercedes at the start of FP2 in the same S-curves, slightly earlier than Albon's impact, causing almost a half-hour delay for everyone. Max Verstappen had a bitter day, hindered by a power unit issue from the morning that resurfaced in the afternoon. Apparently, this unit is no longer usable; however, it's not a big problem as it was an older unit, and he won't incur a penalty on Sunday since everyone will use different engines than those used in the first two practice sessions.
Carlos Sainz had a very positive Friday during free practice in Mexico City, bringing his Ferrari to the top of the timesheets. The Spaniard confirmed the good sensations with the SF-24, which absorbed the post-summer break updates well. Following the victory in Austin, the Maranello team positions itself as one of the favorites for Sunday's race. Sainz expressed satisfaction with the work done but also stressed the importance of staying focused.
The Spanish driver stated: "Overall, it was a positive day for me, as I managed to complete the planned program and work on the balance and setup." In the second session, Sainz had to test the C4 tires, collecting useful data for race setup. He pointed out that FP3 will be crucial for improvements ahead of qualifying, despite the promising start to the day.
On the contrary, Charles Leclerc's Friday was much more challenging. The Monegasque driver had to give up his Ferrari to Oliver Bearman during the first session, where the young driver faced an unexpected incident involving Alexander Albon, which damaged the car. Leclerc returned to the track only in the second session but encountered further complications, including a red flag due to Russell, which reduced the available testing time.
"It was a difficult day for me," Leclerc stated. "I wasn't expected to run in the first session as we would have an extra 30 minutes in the second. Unfortunately, that time was almost entirely wasted due to the red flag from Russell's crash. These things can happen, and now we have to work as hard as possible to achieve the best result in qualifying, as starting positions are crucial on this track. The pace seemed good from my first lap, which makes it even more important to secure a good spot on the grid for tomorrow."
Finally, Oliver Bearman had an especially unlucky day, as previously mentioned. This situation prevented the young English driver from gaining valuable experience with the SF-24 on a circuit he considers exciting.
"It's a real shame that my practice session didn't go as hoped, as it was cut short almost immediately by the incident with Albon," Bearman said. "This is a really beautiful track to drive, and my goal was to become more familiar with the SF-24. These situations can happen in racing; now, I'm curious to see how the team performs in tomorrow's qualifying."
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