F1 2022 results: Dutch GP – First Practice session

Thomas Maher
Mercedes' George Russell on track during first practice for the Dutch Grand Prix. Zandvoort, September 2022.

Mercedes' George Russell on track during first practice for the Dutch Grand Prix. Zandvoort, September 2022.

Mercedes’ George Russell has led team-mate Lewis Hamilton in first practice at Zandvoort, while Max Verstappen’s weekend kicked off in disastrous fashion.

Russell set a 1:12.455 on the soft tyre compound in the final 15 minutes, a time quarter of a second quicker than what Lewis Hamilton could manage in the sister Mercedes W13.

The Mercedes drivers pipped the best time that Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz could manage, after the Spaniard had headed the times for most of the session.

The McLarens were able to vie with the Ferraris during the session, as Lando Norris finished fourth and just ahead of Daniel Ricciardo, with Charles Leclerc resigned to sixth after a quiet hour on track.

Meanwhile, Max Verstappen brought out the red flags after just 10 minutes as he ground to a halt in the first sector with a suspected gearbox issue. He was forced to sit out the rest of the session as a result, although won’t take a grid penalty for the failure.

The full FP1 timesheet is below and the full PlanetF1 report on first practice is here.

  1. George Russell Mercedes 1:12.44
  2. Lewis Hamilton Mercedes +0.240
  3. Carlos Sainz Ferrari +0.390
  4. Lando Norris McLaren +0.474
  5. Daniel Ricciardo McLaren +0.622
  6. Charles Leclerc Ferrari +0.672
  7. Sergio Perez Red Bull +0.961
  8. Fernando Alonso Alpine +1.178
  9. Esteban Ocon Alpine +1.508
  10. Alex Albon Williams +1.608
  11. Mick Schumacher Haas +1.708
  12. Lance Stroll Aston Martin +1.802
  13. Kevin Magnussen Haas +1.950
  14. Pierre Gasly AlphaTauri +2.019
  15. Sebastian Vettel Aston Martin +2.045
  16. Zhou Guanyu Alfa Romeo +2.079
  17. Yuki Tsunoda AlphaTauri +2.175
  18. Valtteri Bottas Alfa Romeo +2.240
  19. Max Verstappen Red Bull +2.259
  20. Nicholas Latifi Williams +2.667