Hamilton and Verstappen criticise new tyre rules at Hungarian GP
Hamilton and Verstappen criticise new tyre rules. Ricciardo makes a solid Alpha Tauri return; Perez suffers a practice crash.
New tyre allocation draws criticism
The Hungarian Grand Prix FP2 saw Ferrari's Charles Leclerc claim the fastest time of the day, while Lewis Hamilton, finishing 16th fastest, labeled his Mercedes as "at its worst".
Reigning champion Max Verstappen wasn't immune to issues either, ranking just 11th on the leaderboard.
Hamilton and Verstappen expressed their dissatisfaction with the new 'alternative tyre allocation' model.
The model reduces tyre sets from 13 to 11 for the weekend, alters compound distribution, and mandates specific tyre usage during qualifying sessions.
"I only had one tyre. Not really a great format this change they made for this weekend," said Hamilton.
He argued the focus should be on reducing waste from unused wet tyres rather than curtailing track time.
Verstappen concurred, noting, "With this new format, you are super-limited with the tyres you can use."
Despite the frustrations, Verstappen appeared positive about his Red Bull, citing competitive long-run pace.
The Dutch driver was quicker than the Ferraris in race-simulation runs, both using the soft tyre. McLaren's Lando Norris, however, clocked the fastest medium tyre run.
On headline times, the Alpines of Pierre Gasly and Esteban Ocon were third and fifth fastest, framing Yuki Tsunoda's Alpha Tauri.
Verstappen's teammate, Sergio Perez, suffered a bad start with a crash in the first session, finishing the day 18th overall.
Spotlight on Ricciardo's Return
Daniel Ricciardo, back on the grid with Alpha Tauri, finished the day 14th, 0.451secs off his team-mate's pace.
The Australian driver maintained a steady session, learning his new vehicle after the dismissal of Nyck de Vries.
"Today was more to feel where I am with the car. It all felt pretty familiar," he noted, projecting confidence about improvement in Saturday's performance.
More misfortune for Perez
As Ricciardo makes his comeback, Red Bull's Perez experienced a challenging day with a first-practice crash.
The error dealt another blow to the Mexican driver's already waning season, marred by a series of mistakes.
Team principal Christian Horner remarked, "You could hear the frustration in his voice."
For Perez, who has Red Bull contract till 2024, this misstep only adds pressure as he aims to prove his worth in the upcoming sessions.
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