Arabic version: كيمي أنتونيللي يتصدر أول حصة تدريبية في جائزة النمسا الكبرى

Kimi Antonelli led George Russell in a Mercedes one-two in first practice at the Austrian Grand Prix, finishing just 0.04 seconds ahead of his teammate. Oscar Piastri’s McLaren followed closely in third, 0.117 seconds off the pace. Lando Norris, who faced a hydraulics issue that limited his track time, secured the seventh-fastest position.

Max Verstappen, running a major aerodynamic upgrade on the Red Bull, ended the session in fourth place, 0.281 seconds behind Antonelli. Lewis Hamilton, winner of the last race in Spain and with an engine upgrade in his Ferrari, finished 0.665 seconds off the pace. Broadcasted radio communications indicated Hamilton’s dissatisfaction with his car’s performance.

The practice session is critical for Ferrari, who are eager to validate their recent engine upgrade. While the team has acknowledged that the upgrade may not fully close the power gap to Mercedes, they hope it, combined with their aerodynamic enhancements from Spain, will improve their competitiveness on this power-sensitive circuit.

McLaren opted against deploying a new rear wing previously scheduled for use, citing the need for further preparation. This wing is designed to operate in a manner similar to those introduced by Ferrari and Red Bull, enhancing straight-line speed.

In other notable performances, Racing Bulls’ Arvid Lindblad finished sixth, while Alpine’s Franco Colapinto and Ferrari’s Dino Beganovic rounded out the top eight and ninth positions, respectively. Oliver Bearman completed the top ten for Haas. Luke Browning, in his second outing for Williams as a reserve driver, finished 18th, just over 0.3 seconds behind regular driver Alex Albon, a performance praised by team boss James Vowles.

According to BBC News, the weekend’s events could significantly impact Ferrari’s title challenge against Mercedes as they look to improve their standing in the championship race.