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F1 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix Is Heating Up at Yas Marina, Free Practice Results Are In

It's the last race of the 2022 Formula 1 season, and everyone's eager to see how the action will unfold at Yas Marina in Abu Dhabi. Drivers have already completed the three free practice sessions, which means some predictions can be made before qualifying. This session will shed some more light on the battle between Mercedes and Ferrari, and the one between Leclerc and Perez. But more on that in a few hours from now.
F1 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix Is Heating Up at Yas Marina, Free Practice Results Are In 29 photos
Photo: Red Bull Racing
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The Abu Dhabi Grand Prix started on Friday, with drivers heading out on track for FP1. It was not at all unexpected to see the Silver Arrows dominating this session, with both Mercedes drivers setting the pace at Yas Marina.

Lewis Hamilton completed a total of 21 laps, his fastest one being clocked at 1:26.633. That was good enough to have him sitting in P1. George Russel had been slightly more diligent with 30 laps, but he was ultimately 0.220 seconds slower than his teammate.

Charles Leclerc brought Ferrari up in P3, while Carlos Sainz sat this session out in favor of Robert Shwartzman. The 23-year-old development driver was surprisingly fast, as he finished the session in P7.

That was perhaps not as impressive as Liam Lawson's P5 finish, but his lap time was still better than what Daniel Ricciardo or Valtteri Bottas had achieved. Sergio Perez was right behind Charles Leclerc, and we can only hope that we'll see a close battle between them throughout the race on Sunday.

F1 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix Is Heating Up at Yas Marina, Free Practice Results Are In
Photo: Mercedes-Benz Group AG
Polish F1 fans were most likely enthusiastic to see Robert Kubica behind the wheel, as he drove the Alfa Romeo to P14 overall. Logan Sargeant was right behind him in the Williams Mercedes, while all of the remaining young drivers were slightly slower than Kevin Magnussen in P15.

As soon as Max Verstappen got back in his car, he shook things up in FP2. After completing 25 laps, he set the fastest lap of the session at 1:25.146. Still, George Russell would not flinch from P2, which once again proves how solid his driving skills are.

And the same goes for Charles Leclerc, who once again finished in P3, as his pace was less than half a second slower compared to Verstappen. Even though Carlos Sainz was the most diligent driver in FP2 with 31 laps in total, he was only the sixth fastest overall. Even so, he was also the last one to dip below the 1:26 mark.

With Lewis Hamilton in P4 and Sergio Perez in P5, it's becoming quite clear that, for 2023, these three teams will once again put on an amazing show in the fight for the championship. Both Alpine drivers were inside the top 10, this time with Ocon finishing ahead of Fernando Alonso. Still, you can't help but be impressed by how fast the Spaniard is, given his age.

F1 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix Is Heating Up at Yas Marina, Free Practice Results Are In
Photo: Scuderia Ferrari
Daniel Ricciardo finished the session in P9, and Australian fans are happy to know that he'll still sort of be involved in F1 next year. While Haas has announced that Mick Schumacher will no longer be driving for the team in 2023, he still gave it his best shot in FP2 and was faster than Magnussen by almost 0.3 seconds.

Going into the second day at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, drivers were ready to tackle FP3. While Hamilton had set the pace early into the session, he was soon overtaken by both Red Bull Racing drivers.

Sergio Perez is the first driver to dip below the 1:25 mark this weekend, as he claimed P1 by the end of the session. According to official team statements, he might get a helping hand from Max Verstappen this weekend. The Mexican driver has only two other races this year, so a third victory would secure Red Bull's dominant position in F1 by the end of the season.

Still, they will have to go through Mercedes first, as once again Hamilton and Russell put on an impressive display of power throughout the session. George is feeling stronger than ever after his first F1 victory, while the stakes are slightly different for Lewis.

F1 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix Is Heating Up at Yas Marina, Free Practice Results Are In
Photo: Mercedes-Benz Group AG
He has never gone a season in F1 without winning at least one race, but that record might be shattered within the next 24 or so hours. Ferrari used a rather strange tactic in FP3, with both drivers mainly out on Medium tires. Even though they switched to the Soft compound, they were only fast enough to finish the session in P6 and P7.

Lando Norris took P5, while Daniel Ricciardo was down in 8th. Sebastian Vettel is keen on scoring a few more F1 points before retiring from the sport, so it's no wonder he set the ninth-fastest lap of FP3. Looking at how things are going over at Haas, this time, Magnussen stayed ahead of his teammate.

But that doesn't have to define how things will go down in qualifying. With more points up for grabs by the end of today, it will be exciting to watch who will get a head start for tomorrow's race. We'll report back as soon as we have more information.
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About the author: Dragos Chitulescu
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The things Dragos enjoys the most in life are, in no particular order: cars, motorcycles, diecast cars, and drifting. He's seen (and driven) many vehicles since he started his writing career back in 2009, but his garage currently houses a 1991 Mazda RX-7 FC3S Turbo II and a 1999 Suzuki SV650-S.
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