F1 Hungarian GP live updates: Latest ahead of qualifying at the ...

Patrick Iversen, Alex Davies and more

July 20, 2024 at 10:32 AM EDT

The Brit lost out, coming in before the track dried up and left him sliding down all the way to P16.

Also out:

16: Pérez

17: Russell

18: Zhou

19: Ocon

20: Gasly

Boy. Sergio Pérez really, really needed a good weekend in Hungary to ease the pressure that has been building on his shoulders. After that crash, it's surely only going to increase. A red flag, and for the second week in a row, his qualifying is over in the opening session.

Christian Horner has described the situation as being "unsustainable" if things continued as they did. I wonder if this could be the tipping point.

GO FURTHER

Sergio Pérez tests Red Bull F1’s faith with another mistake, McLaren on the rise

16. Daniel Ricciardo

17. Lance Stroll

18. Kevin Magnessen

19. Zhou Guanyu

20. Nico Hülkenberg

It’s no secret that Red Bull driver Sergio Pérez has faced scrutiny and criticism about his latest performances this season. He started 2024 with four podium finishes in six races but began struggling from Imola.

“There’s been a lot of things. I think Imola, Monaco, they’ve all been a little bit too tricky. Montreal we had an issue. We’ve been having a few issues and not straight forward weekends,” Pérez said Thursday in Hungary. “Some of them has just been a lack of pace, some of them circumstances. But I believe that it’s no different to any other driver. Not everyone is operating at 100 percent. When you are at Red Bull, everything is more noticeable. But my main priority is to get my season on track. I think there is a long way ahead and it will only matter where I finish (at the season finale) in Abu Dhabi.”

He took responsibility for his performance, saying he hasn’t been at 100 percent “in the circumstances when you put yourself in difficult positions. I take a lot of responsibility for that.” But he reiterated that what matters is where he finishes in the season finale. “Let’s ride the rollercoaster and hopefully get back on form very soon.”

Rumors have been circulating about whether a mid-season driver swap would be possible if Pérez’s poor form continues. The team’s reserve driver, Liam Lawson, would likely be tapped — if this happened — given Daniel Ricciardo’s own struggles. But Yuki Tsunoda said Thursday, per formula1.com, “If they choose Liam, that would be weird.

“But for me at least, I don't think [it will happen]. For sure Liam did a really good job when he drove in the team, but I think I did more than that. We'll see how it goes. In the end, they know how to manage drivers.”

Pérez was asked about Tsunoda’s comments, specifically that the Japanese driver feels he deserves the seat next to reigning world champion Max Verstappen. He said, “I think a lot of drivers out there would love to have my seat. It’s obvious, no? It’s one of the top seats. It’s normal for Yuki to want to move up... I’ve got nothing against it. It’s good to have higher ambitions in the sport.”

The driver market this season is dynamic to say the least, and with plenty of seats still up for grabs, many are waiting in anticipation to see where everyone falls for 2025.

Carlos Sainz essentially has become “the cork in the bottle,” as Kevin Magnussen said in Spain. The Spaniard has yet to make a formal announcement on his contract situation, but Sainz said in Hungary on Thursday “that every week or day that goes by I’m closer to taking a decision, but I’ve been busy watching the Euros and I haven’t taken a decision!”

Sainz is aware of how other drivers are waiting for him to make a decision about his future. There are six seats still yet to be announced for 2025.

“At the same time I don’t think it’s going to change because it’s only the timing that I’m changing. I’m probably not changing the outcome of anyone as probably all teams by now have their priorities and their decision-making depending on each scenario. At the same time, this sport and this world has taught me to be a bit more on the selfish side and look out for myself, and take the decision that I need to take whenever I need to take it.”

Recognizing this is stating the obvious, it’s not just drivers waiting to find out about their futures but also some of the teams.

“The teams have been very patient and I thank them for that. But I’ve also had to be patient,” Sainz said Thursday in Hungary. “What I don’t fully understand is why the market is happening so early this year? Why everyone is so much in a rush when I remember it used to be in the summer break.”

Alpine is one of the seats open, and Pierre Gasly was asked about the 2025 teammate situation. He said, “I welcome the fastest guy out there. We all know who it is. At the moment, we got to wait. But yeah, the team has three good options.”

When asked if he’s spoken to Sainz, Gasly responded, “I did my fair share of the job, but ultimately I believe in the projects we're building with Alpine and I always back the team up. Now it's up to him to make his own decision.”

ICYMI: McLaren’s motorhome has been damaged — again.

During the Spanish GP weekend, the team evacuated their hospitality unit due to a fire, and McLaren used a temporary replacement in Austria. The motorhome was back at Silverstone. But, during setup for this weekend at Hungaroring, the team said an unexpected weather event damaged its hospitality suite.

Oscar Piastri said despite what occurred, it hasn’t changed much of his preparation.

“I mean, the last time our motorhome, well it caught fire last time, I think Lando put it on pole, so maybe it's, I don't know, maybe it's good! Obviously not, but it doesn't change much,” the McLaren driver said. “We've unfortunately got the experience of having to rearrange things a little bit. So we'll be fine for the weekend. Yeah, I don't know if this motorhome we've got is now a bad omen and just, I don't know if it's a sign that we need a new one or what, but no, we'll be fine.”

He is still able to use a driver room given that they have “two smaller rooms,” Piastri said. “So the downstairs one, most importantly, the one with the air conditioning is good. So for this weekend, we're sweet. The upstairs one, I can't use those. But I have one, so I'll be fine.”

Hungaroring is a narrow, bumpy circuit that makes track position and qualifying key.

The key to mastering the high-downforce Hungaroring is finding a rhythm, particularly in the middle sector, given the changes in direction. There’s only one lengthy straight (along the pits), so the circuit is often compared to karting tracks.

“I think Sector 2 used to be a slow speed sector and now it’s become so fast. It’s corner after corner after corner and it makes it really good fun,” Carlos Sainz said about his favorite portion of the track. “People think it’s like a Monaco, not at all. The speeds that we’re carrying through Turn 4 I think is 240/250kph into a 90-degree super-tight left hander, then we go 160, then there’s a small chicane, then we go 160, 160, 240… It’s crazy speeds. Heavy cars, big, which is not ideal but at the same time it makes it feel tighter which gives you a good adrenaline rush.”

GO FURTHER

F1 Hungarian GP track breakdown: The narrow, bumpy, relentless Hungaroring

McLaren may have let a few victories slip through its grasp in recent weeks, but it will head into Hungarian GP qualifying as the favorite for pole thanks to a really strong practice showing from Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri.

Norris topped FP2 on Friday, but said there was still more comfort he wanted to gain from his McLaren car. To finish the session P1, 0.044 seconds clear of teammate Oscar Piastri, suggests there's been a decent step as he goes in search of pole position later today.

You can't discount Piastri, of course, as he looks for his maiden F1 pole. The Australian has been on the receiving end of some bad luck at points this season, notably in Miami with the timing of the safety car. It's looking really good for them so far.

Max Verstappen's upgraded Red Bull will naturally be in contention, but we didn't see the best of the Dutchman through final practice. That lock up at Turn 1 ruined his final lap, meaning there wasn't a chance to see if there was more pace in the car to bridge the almost 0.3-second gap to Norris at the front.

If McLaren and Red Bull are leading the way, then Mercedes and Ferrari look a step behind. The cooler temperatures should help Mercedes, but George Russell was almost half a second down, finishing P4 ahead of Carlos Sainz in fifth for Ferrari. Their teammates Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc had a more difficult time of it, only ending the session 10th and 11th.

Right now, you'd say the smart money is on McLaren heading into qualifying at the Hungaroring.

You don't see that often. Hamilton loses his Mercedes car mid-corner through the second sector, but does well to keep it out of the wall, meaning he can easily rejoin. Hamilton has a record eight victories around the Hungaroring, but thus far hasn't done much to suggest he could be in the fight for a ninth tomorrow.

...and a rare mistake from Verstappen

Welp, if you were hoping to see Max Verstappen cook up a late flyer to get back ahead of the McLarens, you'll be disappointed. He locks the front-right tire immediately at Turn 1, causing him to run deep. GP tells Verstappen he can use the rest of the lap to try and learn something for qualifying, but Verstappen says the front-right tire is "f***ed."

That'll mean we end with a McLaren 1-2 to close out practice in Hungary.