Autobayng News Team
The only two championship contenders to take part in first practice for this weekend’s title-deciding race ended the session at the top of the times.
A mere eight-thousandths of a second separated pace-setter Lando Norris from rival Max Verstappen. The same tiny gap over an 84-second lap also separated Verstappen from Charles Leclerc in third place.
Leclerc shared the track with his brother Arthur, as he did 12 months ago. But the Ferrari driver was unhappy with his car’s pace on high fuel at the end of the session and had a spin at turn five.
The first hour of running ended with five different cars inside the top five places. Behind the McLaren, Red Bull and Ferrari, Andrea Kimi Antonelli was fourth-quickest for Mercedes, narrowly ahead of Nico Hulkenberg in the Sauber.
Mercedes and Sauber were the only teams to field both their regular drivers in the session. Their rivals took advantage of the season’s final first practice session to fulfil the requirement to give opportunities to inexperienced drivers.
Ryo Hirakawa, making his fifth such appearance of the season and his fourth for Haas, was the quickest of the rookie practice drivers. He ended the session 11th overall, two tenths of a second off the team’s regular driver Oliver Bearman, though he had various technical problems to contend with.
Arvid Lindblad, whose F1 debut next year was confirmed by Racing Bulls this week, was 15th quickest as he took over Yuki Tsunoda’s Red Bull. Luke Browning was 18th for Williams after being forced to abandon his first run so a problem with his car’s radio could be repaired.
Aston Martin was the only team to run rookies in both its cars. The pair almost collided when Cian Shield arrived at turn three and found Jak Crawford in the middle of it. Crawford’s engineer acknowledged he failed to warn him in time.
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2025 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix first practice result
| P. | # | Driver | Team | Model | Time | Gap | Laps |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 4 | Lando Norris | McLaren-Mercedes | MCL39 | 1’24.485 | 28 | |
| 2 | 1 | Max Verstappen | Red Bull-Honda RBPT | RB21 | 1’24.493 | 0.008 | 30 |
| 3 | 16 | Charles Leclerc | Ferrari | SF-25 | 1’24.501 | 0.016 | 28 |
| 4 | 12 | Andrea Kimi Antonelli | Mercedes | W16 | 1’24.608 | 0.123 | 30 |
| 5 | 27 | Nico Hulkenberg | Sauber-Ferrari | C45 | 1’24.629 | 0.144 | 28 |
| 6 | 63 | George Russell | Mercedes | W16 | 1’24.733 | 0.248 | 29 |
| 7 | 5 | Gabriel Bortoleto | Sauber-Ferrari | C45 | 1’24.742 | 0.257 | 29 |
| 8 | 87 | Oliver Bearman | Haas-Ferrari | VF-25 | 1’24.759 | 0.274 | 14 |
| 9 | 55 | Carlos Sainz Jnr | Williams-Mercedes | FW47 | 1’24.771 | 0.286 | 27 |
| 10 | 43 | Franco Colapinto | Alpine-Renault | A525 | 1’24.855 | 0.370 | 28 |
| 11 | 50 | Ryo Hirakawa | Haas-Ferrari | VF-25 | 1’24.934 | 0.449 | 28 |
| 12 | 6 | Isack Hadjar | Racing Bulls-Honda RBPT | 02 | 1’24.977 | 0.492 | 31 |
| 13 | 61 | Paul Aron | Alpine-Renault | A525 | 1’25.204 | 0.719 | 27 |
| 14 | 89 | Pato O’Ward | McLaren-Mercedes | MCL39 | 1’25.246 | 0.761 | 28 |
| 15 | 36 | Arvid Lindblad | Red Bull-Honda RBPT | RB21 | 1’25.256 | 0.771 | 26 |
| 16 | 39 | Arthur Leclerc | Ferrari | SF-25 | 1’25.360 | 0.875 | 27 |
| 17 | 40 | Ayumu Iwasa | Racing Bulls-Honda RBPT | 02 | 1’25.475 | 0.990 | 30 |
| 18 | 46 | Luke Browning | Williams-Mercedes | FW47 | 1’25.490 | 1.005 | 18 |
| 19 | 35 | Jak Crawford | Aston Martin-Mercedes | AMR25 | 1’25.889 | 1.404 | 24 |
| 20 | 34 | Cian Shields | Aston Martin-Mercedes | AMR25 | 1’26.432 | 1.947 | 22 |
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2025 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix
- Team bosses promise ‘clean’ fight as FIA does not repeat 2021 warning to contenders
- “The world discovered an even more extraordinary Max this season” – Mekies
- Data: Rapid midfielders could surprise championship contenders in qualifying
- Verstappen happy with Red Bull’s balance, Tsunoda mystified by lack of pace
- Piastri unconcerned at ending Friday practice 11th after missing first session
