Verstappen tops opening practice for Abu Dhabi GP

Max Verstappen turned a lap of 1m37.378s i n his Red Bull Honda to top opening practice for the Abu Dhabi GP – the final race of the 2020 F1 season. However, the true test will be the flying runs later on under the lights in Practice 2.

Mercedes wingman Valtteri Bottas was 2nd quick 0.034s back in 2nd while 3rd place Esteban Ocon was a whopping 1.137 behind in his Renault.

Alex Albon in the 2nd Red Bull and a returning from Covid Lewis Hamilton rounded out the top-5.

So early advantage to Red Bull then, but they won’t be counting their chickens just yet. With Hamilton only just getting back up to speed and yet to try out the soft tire, and Bottas having his first flying run interrupted by a VSC, there is still time to find for the Silver (Black) Arrows.

F1 newcomer for 2021, Mick Schumacher, did 21 laps in his first proper F1 outing for Haas. He lies in P18, having sampled the hard and soft compound tires.

Practice 1 Results