Abu Dhabi GP: Russell was fastest in the first test ahead of 10 rookies

According to Formula 1 regulations, teams must offer young drivers in smaller categories two free test phases with each car. And almost all teams waited until the Abu Dhabi GP, the 22nd and final race of this year’s championship.

During this period, Red Bull had two rookies in the cockpits of the two RB19s, Jake Dennis and Isak Hajar. All other teams split their two cars between a rookie and one of their two established drivers, with the sole exception of Alpha Tauri, which required data from Daniel Ricciardo and Yuki Tsunoda for its new AT04 upgrade.

Champion RBR’s cars featured Formula E world champion Jake Dennis and team academy member Issac Hajjar, but on the soft rubber they were more than a second behind first-year driver George Russell (1:26/072) in the final 15 minutes. . in places 16 and 17.

The English Mercedes driver was responsible for almost the entire process, starting with the medium tire and then switching to the soft tire in the second 15 minutes. Additionally, at the start, both Felipe Drugovic (in the cockpit of Fernando Alonso’s Aston) and Robert Schwartzman (in Charles Leclerc’s Ferrari) took to the track with the metal aerodynamic data capture devices in their cars so that their teams could evaluate the aerodynamic components of the 2024 car.

Russell set a time of around 40 minutes for the first time in the session, improving in the third section of the track, while Drugovic moved up to second place at the end – almost three tenths of a second ahead of Stroll – and ahead of five established drivers.

Much of the teams’ work in these tests focused on determining the correct ground clearance, as new asphalt was laid at Turns 6, 7, 10 and 11 on the Yas Marina track. Therefore, during these tests it often happened that single-seaters scraped their undersides against the ground.

Despite the inexperience of the new drivers, there were no special incidents. Jack Doohan (in Esteban Ocon’s Alpine) narrowly avoided a collision with Logan Sargeant’s Williams in the final corner as the American drove slowly and tried to get off the racing line. In addition, Hajjar had to go into the escape area at the end to avoid the braking Stroll in Turn 6.

Additionally, the slippery nature of the track due to the desert sand forced many drivers – including Ferrari’s Saint and Schwartzman – to make spectacular spins, particularly at the exit of the final corner, as they struggled to keep the soft rubber within the thermal operating window.