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Formula 1
Saudi Arabian GP
F1 Saudi Arabia GP Live Commentary and Updates - FP1 & FP2
Friday's action from the Saudi Arabia Grand Prix at the Jeddah Corniche Circuit
Live AppleTV Race Audio
The Saudi Arabian GP follows on from a dramatic season-opener in Bahrain, where Charles Leclerc led a Ferrari 1-2 from team-mate Carlos Sainz Jr as Red Bull suffered a double retirement when both Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez suffered a vacuum issue within its fuel system.
Sebastian Vettel is missing for Aston Martin again due to COVID-19, with Nico Hulkenberg continuing in his role as super-sub which he undertook at the Bahrain GP and on three occasions for the team back in 2020.
FP1 starts at 2pm GMT (5pm local time) and will run for one hour, with FP2 taking place at 5pm GMT (8pm local time) and will also run for one hour.
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Before the stoppage, only championship leaders Ferrari had yet to make an appearance.
There are 41 minutes left on the clock. Hopefully we won't be under red flag conditions for too long.
Red flag
Daniel Ricciardo reported that the 50m marker board at Turn 1 has come loose. That has come off completely at some point after that message and someone has hit it, leaving debris strewn at Turn 1. A red flag has been called to clear it up.
Stopwatch
Verstappen has found some more time in his Red Bull with a 1m30.888s.
Not a huge amount can be read into this session. The track is visibly dirty right now, while conditions are not representative to what we will have in qualifying and the race later in the weekend.
Stopwatch
Verstappen has improved his time further at the top of the order with a 1m31.298s, still on the hard tyres.
According to our Jonathan Noble, Haas says Magnussen's problem is related to the hydraulics and the car will likely need a replacement radiator.
Just as we say that, both AlphaTauri's have split the Red Bull pair.
Perez has moved back up to second. After both Red Bull's failed to finish the Bahrain GP due to a fuel system vacuum.
Magnussen has gotten out of his Haas after pulling in a few minutes ago with a technical issue. Back down to Earth for the Dane after his dream return in Bahrain last week.
Only 13 drivers have put a time on the board after 10 minutes of running. Verstappen leads Hamilton, Perez, Tsunoda, Ricciardo, Stroll, Ocon, Gasly, Norris, Hulkenberg.
Hamilton goes second on the soft tyre, albeit 1.1s off Verstappen's time. He also had a bit of a lock-up at the last corner.
Stopwatch
Verstappen improves to a 1m31.885s, deposing Red Bull team-mate Perez at the top of the order.
Pierre Gasly has a lock-up into the last corner while on a purple lap. That's something both Verstappen and Bottas did a few moments ago, testing out the modifications made to that turn since last year's race.
Stopwatch
Meanwhile, Verstappen has taken over top spot with a 1m34.167s on the hard tyre. He leads Alpine's Esteban Ocon currently.
Magnussen has been told to box and do not shift, which suggests a gearbox or hydraulic issue.
Stopwatch
Yuki Tsuonda sets the early pace with a 1m36.337s.
Everyone bar the two Ferraris are on track currently.
Fernando Alonso, Nico Hulkenberg, Lance Stroll, Valtteri Bottas, Zhou Guanyu, Sergio Perez, Pierre Gasly, Mick Schumacher, Alex Albon and Daniel Ricciardo are out on track first.
Lights green
Pitlane is open for FP1 at Jeddah!
Tyre compounds on offer this weekend are the C4 soft, C3 medium and C2 hard.
There's the theme tune, which must mean we're only five minutes away from cars hitting the track!
As part of track tweaks to improve visibility and safety, screens have been placed at Turns 13, 16 and 19 to warn drivers of any potential incidents ahead of them.
FP1 will be getting underway in just under 10 minutes and will run for an hour.
Conditions are dry and sunny, but windy, a track temperature of 29 degrees Celsius.
The big news coming into today's running was Aston Martin's announcement that Nico Hulkenberg will continue in place of Sebastian Vettel, who is continuing to recover from COVID-19 after missing last week's Bahrain GP
The Jeddah circuit has undergone some tweaks following last year's crash-filled race to improve visibility.
Good afternoon and welcome to live coverage of FP1 for the Formula 1 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix!
By: autosport.com
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