FP1: Hamilton narrowly ahead of Ferrari

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Mercedes' Lewis Hamilton was fastest as the new Formula One cars headed out for the first competitive running of the season. The World Champion ended up just a tiny bit faster than the Ferrari duo, headed by Vettel.

Just like on the final day of testing, both Mercedes and Ferrari were tightly matched, though this time it was Hamilton who edged his competition. That competition was fierce, with the gap to 5th placed Bottas as little as 0.267s.

Kimi Raikkonen was the fastest behind Bottas, confirming expectations that Alfa Romeo might become a strong midfield contender. The Finn edged out Kvyat and Gasly, albeit more than 1.2s slower than the pace setter.

Magnussen made sure Haas is represented in the top 10 while Nico Hulkenberg saved his session by going 10th fastest, after having had to sit out almost an entire hour as his Renault R.S.19 was suffering from electrical issues. Crucially, that was still 7 tenths faster than his new Australian team mate, Daniel Ricciardo.

Alexander Albon meanwhile became the first to hit the barriers in 2019 as he continued to get acquinted with the circuit and his Toro Rosso STR14. His shunt at Turn 2 caused the front wing to break off, but other than that, there was no major issue and he could limp back on his own to the pits while a red flag was waved.

Results

Pos.No.DriverCarTimeGapLaps
144Lewis HamiltonMercedes1:23.599-26
25Sebastian VettelFerrari1:23.637+0.038s18
316Charles LeclercFerrari1:23.673+0.074s18
433Max VerstappenRed Bull Racing Honda1:23.792+0.193s22
577Valtteri BottasMercedes1:23.866+0.267s30
67Kimi RäikkönenAlfa Romeo Racing Ferrari1:24.816+1.217s18
726Daniil KvyatScuderia Toro Rosso Honda1:24.832+1.233s30
810Pierre GaslyRed Bull Racing Honda1:24.932+1.333s23
920Kevin MagnussenHaas Ferrari1:24.934+1.335s24
1027Nico HulkenbergRenault1:25.015+1.416s11
1199Antonio GiovinazziAlfa Romeo Racing Ferrari1:25.166+1.567s23
128Romain GrosjeanHaas Ferrari1:25.224+1.625s18
1323Alexander AlbonScuderia Toro Rosso Honda1:25.230+1.631s21
1455Carlos SainzMcLaren Renault1:25.285+1.686s19
1518Lance StrollRacing Point Bwt Mercedes1:25.288+1.689s26
1611Sergio PerezRacing Point Bwt Mercedes1:25.498+1.899s21
173Daniel RicciardoRenault1:25.634+2.035s16
184Lando NorrisMcLaren Renault1:25.966+2.367s31
1988Robert KubicaWilliams Mercedes1:27.914+4.315s25
2063George RussellWilliams Mercedes1:28.740+5.141s25