Sainz sets pace in Hungary as Mercs remain adrift

Carlos Sainz beat Max Verstappen to the fastest time in first practice at the Hungarian Grand Prix as Ferrari appeared to hold an early advantage over Red Bull.

Sainz was engaged in a three-way battle with Red Bull’s world championship leader Verstappen and Ferrari team-mate Charles Leclerc throughout the session, but it was the Spaniard who led the way with a 1:18.750 at the Hungaroring.

Lando Norris took fourth for McLaren, nipping ahead of Mercedes duo George Russell and Lewis Hamilton, who were separated by the other Red Bull of Sergio Perez.

The other McLaren of Daniel Ricciardo was half a second back from his team-mate in eighth, while Alpine’s Esteban Ocon and Fernando Alonso completed the top 10.

The introduction of a new rear wing appeared to offer some improvement for Aston Martin, as Sebastian Vettel, who on Thursday announced he will retire at the end of the season, finished a place ahead of team-mate Lance Stroll in 11th.

After Verstappen took advantage of Leclerc’s crash from the lead at last week’s French GP to extend his world championship lead to 63 points, Ferrari have been left with little margin for error for the remaining 10 races of the season.

The expectation arriving in Hungary was that the circuit style would suit the Italian team better than Red Bull, and the early evidence suggested that may be correct, with Sainz taking top spot despite having recorded his best lap on a set of tyres he had already attempted a flying lap on.

The fact that Sainz once more outpaced team-mate Leclerc was also notable, with the Spaniard appearing to have had the edge last weekend in France but being unable to compete for victory due to a grid penalty for taking new engine parts.

Leclerc promised on Thursday that he had moved on from his disastrous error in France, but will undoubtedly be keen to re-establish his status as the team’s lead driver throughout the remainder of the weekend.

More to follow…