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Fight for the 2022 Formula 1 Title Resumes in Belgium, Free Practice Results Are In

It has been a long month for Formula 1 fans, as drivers had a bit of time to catch their breath for the second half of the season. Red Bull Racing has been dominating the first part with Max Verstappen driving as if his life depended on it. But Ferrari and Mercedes aren't throwing in the towel just yet. In just a few weeks, the circus will be moving away from Europe, but first, we look at how teams performed in free practice yesterday.
Fight for the 2022 Formula 1 Title Resumes in Belgium, Free Practice Results Are In 15 photos
Photo: Mercedes-Benz Group AG
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Fernando Alonso and Yuki Tsunoda were the two most diligent drivers in Free Practice 1, as they both managed to squeeze in a total of 17 laps before their time ran up. Even so, Alonso only managed to set a fast lap of 1:49.813, which put him in P14 overall.

His Japanese opponent was quite a bit faster in P8, as he was just 1.772 seconds behind the leader of this first session. Ferrari fans were most likely ecstatic to see their two favorites topping the leaderboard yesterday, as Sainz was the fastest man of the session.

Charles Leclerc was just 0.069 seconds behind, while Max Verstappen was the third and final driver to secure a lap faster than one minute and 47 seconds. We're already getting used to seeing George Russell in fourth place.

And we can't help but wonder if he will manage to get his first GP victory this season. Mercedes engines were shaking up the mid-field throughout FP1, with Lance Stroll in P5, Alexander Albon in P6, Daniel Ricciardo in P7, and Lewis Hamilton in P9.

Fight for the 2022 Formula 1 Title Resumes in Belgium, Free Practice Results Are In
Photo: Ferrari
Looking at the second Free Practice session of the day, Max Verstappen took charge and improved on Sainz's lap time by almost one second. That means he was the fastest driver on Day 1 at Spa-Francorchamps, and the only one to dip below the one minute and 46 seconds mark.

Both Ferrari drivers picked up their pace for FP2, but Sainz would only finish fifth overall. Leclerc was almost one second slower than his Red Bull arch-rival, with both Lando Norris and Lance Stroll hot on his tail.

Lewis Hamilton pushed hard to get back on top, and after 18 laps he was now up in sixth. Strangely enough, we're getting to a point where it's almost unusual to see Lewis ahead of his younger teammate. But depending on team strategies, the driver rhythm during day 1 may or may not be relevant to the greater picture.

Meanwhile, Mick Schumacher was the slowest driver in FP2, even though he put in a total of 23 laps trying to catch up to his opponents. There has been a lot of behind-the-scenes drama during this short summer break, and we're bound to see more difficult calls throughout the next few weeks.

Verstappen seems to be confident in his abilities to secure the 2022 F1 title, and most Scuderia Ferrari fans aren't that optimistic about the Italian team's strategy of catching up. But it's not over yet. And we'll be sure to report back from today's qualifying and tomorrow's race as well.
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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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