Max Verstappen leads the race time sheets two hours into the opening session of 2024 Formula One preseason testing.
He recorded a 1:33.065 effort on the C3 Medium tyres to move up the leaderboard. Earlier in the practice, Charles Leclerc in the Ferrari was only 0.182s slower than the Red Bull with his RB20 looking formidable on the harder C4 and C5 rubber.
With a bright morning, Fernando Alonso and Valtteri Bottas were the first drivers to take to the circuit. George Russell of Mercedes finished 19 tours in two hours for the eighth quickest time.
Halfway through the four-hour morning practice, Bottas increased the Stake to P1 and settled into fourth place, while Alonso completed 32 laps, demonstrating that the AMR24 was a cooperative machine for the two-time World Champion.
Oscar Piastri’s subdued start to McLaren testing consisted of just 17 laps, while Yuki Tsunoda completed 37 laps, making him the equally busiest driver with Verstappen for the new RB machine.
No yellow flags were raised during the two hours of play. The only noteworthy incident other than oversteer moments occurred when Esteban Ocon’s Alpine skidded across the gravel at Turn 4 and pitted for repairs.