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Mercedes led the final two Friday practice sessions of the 2015 Formula One world championship at the Yas Marina circuit in Abu Dhabi. Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg both topped one session each, with Ferrari, Red Bull and Force India all managing to get drivers within a second in both sessions.

Formula One: Mercedes ahead in Abu Dhabi Friday practice, RTR Sports

Lewis Hamilton has won the 2014 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix and F1 world championship.

Hamilton held the top spot by just 1 tenth over team-mate Rosberg in the first practice session that was held during the heat of the day in Abu Dhabi. The heat and the time of day made the session largely unrepresentative considering that qualifying and the race will take place during late evening into night. This meant that many teams, such as Red Bull, opted to complete aero testing.

Kimi Raikkonen was the closest challenger to the Mercedes drivers; perhaps owing the speed to the temperature of the circuit at the time. He was 7 tenths off of Hamilton and 2 tenths ahead of 4th placed Daniil Kvyat, the second Ferrari of Sebastian Vettel and 6th placed Nico Hulkenberg in the Force India.

Daniel Ricciardo was 7th fastest ahead of Sergio Perez and Pastor Maldonado, with Felipe Massa completing the top 10; 1.6 seconds down on Hamilton. Lotus had a shaky start to the weekend after having a late freight arrival that cost them running time in FP1. Both cars eventually managed to make it out on track, with Jolyon Palmer only getting 8 laps in after suffering a water leak. He ended the session 18th in Romain Grosjean’s car.

Abu Dhabi practice 1 results:

POS Driver Team Time Laps
1 Lewis Hamilton Mercedes 1’43.754 27
2 Nico Rosberg Mercedes 1’43.895 31
3 Kimi Raikkonen Ferrari 1’44.500 27
4 Daniil Kvyat Red Bull 1’44.702 23
5 Sebastian Vettel Ferrari 1’44.742 23
6 Nico Hulkenberg Force India 1’44.751 22
7 Daniel Ricciardo Red Bull 1’44.893 25
8 Sergio Perez Force India 1’44.934 27
9 Pastor Maldonado Lotus 1’45.314 28
10 Felipe Massa Williams 1’45.433 19
11 Valtteri Bottas Williams 1’45.603 22
12 Max Verstappen Toro Rosso 1’45.718 32
13 Jenson Button McLaren 1’45.773 15
14 Fernando Alonso McLaren 1’45.865 20
15 Felipe Nasr Sauber 1’46.115 20
16 Carlos Sainz Toro Rosso 1’46.220 21
17 Marcus Ericsson Sauber 1’46.407 28
18 Jolyon Palmer Lotus 1’46.501 8
19 Will Stevens Manor 1’48.836 19
20 Roberto Merhi Manor 1’49.888 20

Formula One: Mercedes ahead in Abu Dhabi Friday practice, RTR SportsMercedes maintained their positions at the top of the time-sheets in the much more representative 2nd practice session, but this time it was Nico Rosberg who led Lewis Hamilton by 1 tenth. The pair look set to continue their fight for supremacy as they end the season this weekend.

Sergio Perez was in an impressive 3rd place at the end of the session despite the team having to stop the car after a brake-by-wire fault on his Force India; a problem that also affected the Toro Rosso of Carlos Sainz. He was just 6 tenths off of Rosberg and under a tenth faster than 4th placed Daniel Ricciardo in the Red Bull.

Sebastian Vettel and Daniil Kvyat were 5th and 6th fastest ahead of Kimi Raikkonen and Nico Hulkenberg. Fernando Alonso was in the dazzlingly high position of 9th in the McLaren Honda after recovering from yet more engine issues in the first session. He was the last driver within a second of Rosberg in P1. Pastor Maldonado completed the top 10.

Abu Dhabi practice 2 results:

POS Driver Team Time Laps
1 Nico Rosberg Mercedes 1’41.983 38
2 Lewis Hamilton Mercedes 1’42.121 31
3 Sergio Perez Force India 1’42.610 23
4 Daniel Ricciardo Red Bull 1’42.647 36
5 Sebastian Vettel Ferrari 1’42.717 35
6 Daniil Kvyat Red Bull 1’42.798 34
7 Kimi Raikkonen Ferrari 1’42.849 36
8 Nico Hulkenberg Force India 1’42.928 35
9 Fernando Alonso McLaren 1’42.955 31
10 Pastor Maldonado Lotus 1’43.431 37
11 Valtteri Bottas Williams 1’43.441 32
12 Felipe Massa Williams 1’43.506 32
13 Max Verstappen Toro Rosso 1’43.662 39
14 Carlos Sainz Toro Rosso 1’43.854 20
15 Romain Grosjean Lotus 1’43.929 27
16 Jenson Button McLaren 1’44.050 31
17 Felipe Nasr Sauber 1’44.116 36
18 Marcus Ericsson Sauber 1’45.245 28
19 Will Stevens Manor 1’46.450 35
20 Roberto Merhi Manor 1’47.022 27

 

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Emanuele Venturoli
Emanuele Venturoli
A graduate in Public, Social and Political Communication from the University of Bologna, he has always been passionate about marketing, design and sport.
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