AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — Former IndyCar champion Alex Palou had just begun his first live Grand Prix consultation behind the wheel of a Formula 1 car when he said the McLaren’s feel and speed were “incredible. “
Moments later, Williams’ Logan Sargeant complained about tyre grip like a veteran veteran.
On Friday at the United States Grand Prix, a parade of rookies took place at the Circuit of the Americas in the first 60-minute consultation of the day, giving the series a glimpse into the potential long race of the drivers’ grid.
Palou finished it off with a smile from ear to ear and little else.
“Super happy,” said the Spaniard. It’s one of my dreams. “
Palou had conducted a test drive in a 2021 F1 car, but drove Daniel Ricciardo’s existing edition on a live track beyond his expectations. He drove it deep into the braking zones and corners to make the most of his time on the track.
He had to be careful.
“It’s fast!” he said. Then you have the traffic, you don’t need to get in anyone else’s way and you have the car that’s not yours. I’m looking to take car from the car. “
Formula 1 is asking all groups to use reserve drivers for two practice sessions this season. That put four newcomers behind the wheel, plus former F1 normal Antonio Giovinazzi.
Everyone closed the gear, completing at the back of the session.
“Our schedule today is not for fast,” Palou said. “It’s to get data. “
Palou the largest call of the group. After winning the 2021 IndyCar championship, the Arrow McLaren SP team attempted to move him into their lineup for 2023. Palou eventually retained through his existing Chip Ganassi Racing when the groups simply did not agree to the purchase.
Palou is allowed to test McLaren driving, but may not be enrolled in McLaren’s racing programme until 2024. And although he said that as a driver, F1 would be a dream, he is still satisfied to drive IndyCar.
“I smile the same way in IndyCar,” Palou said. “As a driving force in racing that motorsport loves, F1 is the place to go. Throughout my career, I realised that F1 was not a position I could reach. “I went through IndyCar and we did it. Interestingly, getting this IndyCar championship gave me the opportunity to be here today.
“I accepted each and every moment,” he said. I’m not chasing him. If someone drives me, I will drive him. This is the last dream. (But) I have a career in IndyCar, we’ve been a success and I need to get as many championships as possible.
Sargeant assumes another kind of expectation and pressure. The 21-year-old may be the American driving force that enthusiasts in the U. S. are experiencing. The U. S. , and major sponsors, have been eagerly waiting.
Formula 1 hasn’t had an American on the grid since Alexander Rossi in 2015, and it hasn’t had a champion since Mario Andretti in 1978. Sargeant is lately third in the F2 feed series.
He drove Friday at the position of Nicholas Latifi, who remains through Williams for 2023. The team has yet to announce a repositioning and Sargeant may be in the game.
“You have to be practical, stay the course and do practical work. But it’s crazy, everything will happen so quickly and so suddenly,” Sargeant said.
2023 Alfa Romeo reserve driver Theo Pourchair drove for Valtteri Bottas. The 19-year-old Frenchman is the last moment in F2 qualifying. And Ferrari’s progression driver, Theo Schwartzman, 23, drove Charles Leclerc’s consultation.
Giovinazzi, who has 67 races in F1 and is now a reserve driving force for Ferrari, had a depressing consultation at the wheel of Haas’ Kevin Magnussen. The Italian had only done a few laps when he spun and hit the wall with the car.
FAST TIMES
Ferrari ruled any of the practice sessions, led by Carlos Sainz in the first and Leclerc in the second. Both hope to challenge Red Bull season champion Max Verstappen for pole position on Saturday. The last nine races have been won from the front. row.
SCHUMACHER’S HOT SEAT
Haas leader Mick Schumacher has been warned that he will have to make trouble and not destroy his car in the last four races if he hopes to keep his seat by 2023.
The son of former seven-time champion Michael Schumacher has struggled in just two races this season, and since Austria in July. But teammate Kevin Magnussen came to his defense this week.
“It’s been very difficult for me to beat lately,” Magnussen said. “I think the way he drives at the moment, he definitely deserves a grid position. But I had no influence. I can only wish him well.
W SERIES BACKUP
Seven-time Mercedes champion Lewis Hamilton said F1 and owner Liberty Media stepped in to help save the cash-strapped final races of the women’s W Series season.
Serie W played its third season, but lost its last events in Austin and next week in Mexico City after a major investor collapsed.
“There’s no way those amazing young drivers are going to get into Formula 1, and then there are other people who say we’re never going to see a female F1 driver,” Hamilton said. and Liberty is doing so well that it’s not much for them to be able to help in this space.
PROBABILITIES AND ENDINGS
F1 held an assembly on Friday at the track with team principals and actor Brad Pitt, Jerry Bruckheimer and director Joseph Kosiniski to update everyone on the F1 film they are running on. Red Bull’s Sergio Perez will receive a five-place grid penalty for his fifth engine this season.
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