Baku (AFP)
The "best Friday" at Red Bull for Sergio Pérez, "more difficult than expected" at Mercedes: the Formula 1 Azerbaijani Grand Prix is rarely stingy with surprises and free practice has already brought some.
With a time of 1 min 42 sec 115/1000 during the second session, the Mexican proved to be the fastest of the day, ahead of his Dutch teammate Max Verstappen (at 101/1000) and the Ferraris of the Spanish Carlos Sainz Jr (at 128/1000) and Monegasque Charles Leclerc (at 321/1000).
Rare and worrying, after an already difficult GP in Monaco a fortnight ago (Lewis Hamilton 7th, retirement for Valtteri Bottas), no Mercedes is in the Top 10 of free practice 2: the Briton is 11th at 1 sec 041/1000 and the Finn 16th at 2 sec 069/1000.
"I feel like I had a good day but we're just not very fast," said Hamilton, who laughed yellow.
"I was attacking, I was on the limit, but the car is limited. I should have been faster but we lack grip. It is not easy to be out of the Top 10 when we were in rhythm elsewhere. I don't really know why we're here. "
Same story on the side of Bottas who deplores a "lack of grip" and a car that "slips".
"It's more difficult than expected", does not hide the Finn, for whom "something is fundamentally wrong".
"We have to find what," he urges.
- Red Bull "solid" -
It would be better before free practice 3 Saturday at 1:00 p.m. local (11:00 a.m. French) and qualifying at 4:00 p.m. (2:00 p.m.).
It would indeed be inappropriate to let Red Bull and Verstappen take off in the championship, while the Dutchman is ahead of Hamilton by four points among the drivers and the Austrians have one more unit among the constructors.
"In free practice 1, the car was pretty decent, I was comfortable, then in FP2, we made a few changes to see if it was better but it was not," says the leader of the championship.
"We will look into that by tomorrow and see what direction to take in qualifying. So far the team looks solid and I'm very happy with it."
# photo1
If Red Bull “looks solid”, this is first of all the case with Pérez on a circuit that has been successful for him in the past, with two 3rd places for Force India in 2016 and 2018.
"Today, I felt like I understood the car better and how to drive it," said the Mexican, who arrived in his new team during the winter.
"It's probably my best Friday this season, the most complete in terms of data and comfort in the car."
- Ferrari too -
It is "encouraging" for his boss Christian Horner.
And enough to get a first pole in F1, category in which the Mexican has been racing since 2011, after a first success last year?
In qualifying, we will certainly also have to rely on Ferrari at ease on the urban circuits (Leclerc was on pole in Monaco before a mechanical problem prevented him from taking the start, Sainz finished 2nd in the GP).
And the Spaniard could give a hard time to the Monegasque, who deplores an excursion in the barriers which cost him a front wing in free practice 2.
# photo2
The French Pierre Gasly (6th in FP1 and 5th in FP2) is also well launched, ahead of the Alpine of the Spaniard Fernando Alonso, more at ease than his French teammate Esteban Ocon, the McLaren of the British Lando Norris and the drivers Alfa Romeo.
As for the race on Sunday at 4:00 p.m. (2:00 p.m. French), the deterioration of the tires - more important than in previous editions because of the heat - could be a factor to take into account.
Verstappen and Leclerc complained about it but, recently, it was above all Mercedes that suffered from the high temperatures ...
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