The first free practice of the Azerbaijan round of the Formula 1 Grand Prix took place on September 13th. This year, unlike the previous year, the Grand Prix is ​​held in a traditional racing style. So, the first two days are free practice session and on Saturday evening is the Qualifying round.

In the FP1 session, Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc crashed at Turn 15, seriously damaging his car. His teammate Carlos Sainz skidded off the track at Turn 7, causing the side of his car to rub against the wall. New Williams driver Franco Colapinto also crashed and seriously damaged his car. Alpine’s Esteban Ocon withdrew from the practice session after discovering a problem with his car.

In the next session, Charles Leclerc again had a steering problem at the same turn, but this time he managed to avoid a collision and once again emphasized the problem with his car through the radio message. Max Verstappen also nearly escaped an accident at Turn 5. Franco Colapinto also barely escaped damaging car after lightly scraping the wall during the race. Alpine driver Pierre Gasly discovered a power unit malfunction during the race and announced via radio voice the reason for his sudden speed drop on the track.

Article/Photo: Nurlan Tahirli