Austrian GP 2024: Max Verstappen dominates FP1 despite facing engine failures, Piastri follows closely

Red Bull driver Max Verstappen showed his dominance during the Austrian Grand Prix practice session, recording the fastest time despite an incident that caused a red flag. The reigning world champion's car ground to a halt on the pit-straight midway through the 60-minute session, prompting red flags and a temporary halt to the action. 

After being wheeled back into the garage, the Red Bull team quickly diagnosed a potential software glitch, allowing Verstappen to rejoin the track with minimal time loss. Switching to soft tyres, Verstappen posted an impressive 1:05.685, jumping to the top of the timesheets. He overtook Lewis Hamilton, who had set the leading time on hard tyres but did not complete a lap on soft tyres, ultimately finishing fifth fastest.

Hamilton dominates the track on Hard Tyres

Oscar Piastri of McLaren delivered a strong performance, clocking in at 1:05.961 to secure the second-fastest time. Ferrari's Charles Leclerc followed closely, posting a time of 1:06.055, with his teammate Carlos Sainz just behind at 1:06.128.

Hamilton's time of 1:06.254 placed him in fifth, ahead of Alpine's Esteban Ocon, who recorded a 1:06.297. Aston Martin's Lance Stroll finished seventh with a time of 1:06.384, narrowly beating George Russell of Mercedes, who posted a 1:06.386. Rounding off the top ten were Yuki Tsunoda of VCARB, with a time of 1:06.579, and Fernando Alonso of Aston Martin, who recorded a 1:06.603.

Here are the final results for the FP1 Austrian Grand Prix: