F1 LIVE | Max Verstappen causes a red flag in FP1 but still tops timesheets

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F1 live blog first free practice 2024 Austrian Grand Prix
28 June at 10:30
Last update 28 June at 12:31
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  • Matt Gretton
  • Editor-in-Chief

Teams and drivers have just one 60-minute practice session for the 2024 Austrian Grand Prix weekend because the sprint format will be used. That makes practice around the Red Bull Ring one of the most important of the year. Will McLaren and Lando Norris still be able to challenge Red Bull and Max Verstappen? Will Mercedes maintain their lead on Ferrari? We'll get the first answers to those questions in this session, which you can follow live below.

F1 LIVE | FP1: Austrian Grand Prix

The 2024 Formula 1 season so far

Verstappen stormed out of the blocks and looked set to continue the dominance that saw him win almost every race in 2023. But that dominant era has now come to a close, though the Dutchman is still winning because he is making fewer mistakes when it matters most. McLaren had the quickest car in Spain, but a mistake from Norris at the start cost him dearly.

He started on pole position after what he described was a "perfect lap" but he failed to follow that up on Sunday. He moved off the line slowly and was overtaken by Verstappen and George Russell at the first corner. This forced Norris into a catch-up race, which meant he couldn't take advantage of being fastest in Barcelona. Meanwhile, Mercedes has made significant gains since Canada, with a pole position and two podium trophies to show for it. Ferrari have lagged behind, but Fred Vasseur isn't overly concerned. 

A lot of the attention will be on the 'second drivers' at the two top teams. Oscar Piastri and, especially, Sergio Perez. Neither have been close to their respective teammates in recent races, leaving them both alone in terms of strategy. Perez had a better weekend in Spain, but still not at the desired level. 

How do sprint weekends work in 2024?

The main change for 2024 is the running order. The weekend will begin with 60 minutes of practice. This will be the only practice session during the entire weekend. Every other session is meaningful for the World Championship. Last season, F1 teams went straight to qualifying for Sunday's Grand Prix. Instead of hosting a sprint on Saturday, qualifying for the sprint race will take place on Friday. The sprint race itself will be the first bit of on-track action on Saturday before qualifying for the Grand Prix takes place in its traditional time slot. Sunday's Grand Prix remains unchanged. 

As a result, there are some changes regarding parc ferme. Teams will enter Parc Ferme when they leave the garage for Friday's sprint qualifying, but restrictions will be released after the sprint race. All of this means qualifying for the sprint race will begin shortly after free practice.