F1: Chinese GP practice halted by trackside fire
Aston Martin's Lance Stroll set the quickest time in the Formula One Chinese Grand Prix's first and only practice session, which was interrupted by a grass fire.
With lap times tumbling as the hour wore on and more rubber was laid down, several drivers took it in turns to top the leaderboard, and Stroll's time of 1:36.302 saw him emerge fastest, 0.327s ahead of McLaren's Oscar Piastri.
The session was briefly but bizarrely interrupted for several minutes when the grass at the inside of Turn 7 caught fire, leading to a red flag while the conflagration was extinguished by nearby marshals.
Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez were third and fourth, with suggestions that the Red Bull duo were masking their true pace on a circuit where they are expected to be favorites to win.
Several drivers finished in unfamiliar places, with the Ferraris of Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz ending up 13th and 14th.
Piastri's teammate Lando Norris finished 16th, but the Briton almost certainly would have been considerably higher had he not aborted his one push lap on Soft compound rubber.
Further down the field, Mercedes' George Russell and Lewis Hamilton were a lowly 17th and 18th respectively, though neither driver used Soft tyres throughout the session.
In a troubled hour, Hamilton was also shown the black and white flag for unsporting behavior after he failed to stay to the right of a bollard when entering the pit lane.
Stroll's teammate Fernando Alonso also didn't use Soft tyres and ended up 19th, ahead of an unhappy Pierre Gasly in 20th and last place, with the Frenchman complaining to his Alpine mechanics that his session was 'completely unacceptable' and that he had learned nothing from it.
With China playing host to the first F1 Sprint event of 2024, this was the weekend's only practice session, as teams and drivers now gear up for Sprint Qualifying later on Friday afternoon.
Related articles
Disney's streaming business turns a profit in first financial report since challenge to Iger
The Walt Disney Co. swung to a loss in its second quarter because of restructuring and impairment ch2024-05-08Taylor Swift fans are scammed out of more than £1 million by ticket fraudsters
Thousands of Taylor Swift fans have been scammed out of more than £1million by fraudsters claiming t2024-05-08Brian Austin Green says he's learned to 'pick his battles' while co
Brian Austin Green opened up about learning to 'pick your battles' as a co-parent during a new inter2024-05-08US navy flies aircraft through the Taiwan Strait a day after US
TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) — The U.S. 7th Fleet said a Navy P-8A Poseidon flew through the Taiwan Strait on2024-05-08Chinese cars gain popularity in Botswana
GABORONE, May 4 (Xinhua) -- At the 9th edition of the Shell Gaborone Motor Show in Gaborone, the Bot2024-05-08Mookie Betts ties career high with 5 hits as Dodgers beat Nationals 6
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Mookie Betts tied his career high with five hits, doubling twice and driving in t2024-05-08
atest comment