Report: Mixed conditions to start Hungarian GP weekend

The team are picking through the data gained on our first day of the Hungarian Grand Prix weekend – a day that brought mixed conditions.

Although FP1 had started dry, the rain rolled in within a few minutes. A red flag stoppage early in the session meant no drivers recorded a time in the dry.

Both Alex Albon and Logan Sargeant were able to get some laps in towards the end of the session on intermediate tyres, with our No2 finishing in P9 and our No23 in P13.

Thankfully the worst of the weather cleared well before the start of FP2, offering everyone some meaningful dry running.

We were able to record 62 laps across both drivers, getting time on both the soft and medium compound.

Alex’s best time of 1:18.377 put him P13, whilst Logan’s 1:18.836 placed him P17.

“It was a good day for us with the car feeling okay out there, and it being possible to get it into a pretty decent window,” Albono explained.

“It does highlight that it’s not a track that really suits us so even though the car felt good, relative to our rivals, we’re still lacking a bit of pace which is to be expected.

“However, thinking about it from last year, the car is a good improvement, but we still need to do a bit more for tomorrow if we want to get into Q2.”

Logan continued our Friday reaction by adding: “It’s been a disjointed first day here in Budapest with mixed conditions between FP1 and FP2.

“The car is in a decent window but there’s plenty to find ahead of tomorrow and plenty of work to do overnight.”

Dave Robson, Head of Vehicle Performance, is largely pleased with our first day on track at the Hungaroring.

“Although FP1 was disrupted by some rain and red flags, we had a decent day,” he shared, continuing: “This is the first of the ATA events, which has led to some alternative run plans amongst the teams, but we are happy with what we chose to do, and we will see tomorrow how this plays out.

“Both drivers were mostly happy with their cars. However, we will make some changes overnight as we look to stay ahead of the changing track conditions.

“The car is a lot better here than it was last year, but the Hungaroring still doesn’t suit the natural strengths of the FW45.

“We will push as hard as possible tomorrow and aim to use the new qualifying format to help us achieve a good result.

“The race will be challenging, but with overtaking usually difficult here, any places that we can make tomorrow will help us achieve a strong result on Sunday.”