F1 Imola GP 2024 LIVE: Practice results, times and schedule as Charles Leclerc records fastest lap
Lando Norris looks to build on his first F1 win at the Emila Romagna Grand Prix this weekend
Formula 1 returns to Europe for the first time this season as the iconic Imola circuit hosts the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix this weekend.
Lando Norris claimed a stunning win – his first in F1 – last time out in Miami, beating Max Verstappen after a perfectly timed safety car and securing McLaren’s first win since September 2021.
Nonetheless, Verstappen still has a healthy 33-point lead in the drivers’ championship to Red Bull team-mate Sergio Perez, with Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc in third following another podium in Miami.
There’s work to do for Lewis Hamilton, though, who is enduring his worst-ever start to an F1 season, currently languishing down in ninth. Last year’s race at Imola was cancelled due to heavy flooding in the region, while Verstappen triumphed in 2022 and 2021.
Follow latest updates from the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix with The Independent
Second practice coming right up!
So can Charles Leclerc and Ferrari maintain their lead? Or will Red Bull fix their issues and head back to the top of the leaderboard?!
FP2 coming right up in 5 minutes!
What are the timings this weekend?
(All times BST)
Friday 17 May
- Free practice 2: 4pm
Saturday 18 May
- Free practice 3: 11:30am
- Qualifying: 3pm
Sunday 19 May
- Race: 2pm
Weekend preview: The key steps for Lando Norris to become a genuine F1 title contender
Beaming in the novelty and adulation of his first victory in Formula 1, Lando Norris was not going to miss a beat in celebrating over the past fortnight. Partying with American sports stars, check. Two rounds of golf at Augusta National, check. Appearances on This Morning and Radio 1, check.
But, ultimately, you’re only as good as your last race. And now the fast-paced, hard-nosed world of F1 has moved on from Miami.
So to this weekend and the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix, named after the Italian region where the famous Imola circuit is situated, 28 miles east of Bologna, and hosts a year on from the event’s cancellation due to heavy flooding. A track where Norris has gone well in the past – podiums in 2021 and 2022 – is a near-ideal follow-up from the highest of Florida highs, as F1 heads to Europe for the first time in 2024.
Full piece below:
The key steps for Lando Norris to become a genuine F1 title contender
McLaren driver Norris is finally a race winner – but should be immediately striving for more as F1 heads to Europe for the first time this season and to Imola, 30 years on from Ayrton Senna’s tragic death
Constructors’ standings ahead of this weekend:
1. Red Bull - 239 points
2. Ferrari - 187 points
3. McLaren - 124 points
4. Mercedes - 64 points
5. Aston Martin - 42 points
6. RB - 19 points
7. Haas - 7 points
8. Alpine - 1 point
9. Williams - 0 points
10. Sauber - 0 points
Lewis Hamilton would like to see teenager Kimi Antonelli replace him at Mercedes
Lewis Hamilton has called on Mercedes boss Toto Wolff to replace him with 17-year-old Kimi Antonelli.
Seven-time world champion Hamilton will leave a vacant seat at the Silver Arrows when he joins Ferrari in 2025.
Wolff has flirted with Max Verstappen while Carlos Sainz – making way for Hamilton at Ferrari – is also a contender for the seat.
“Carlos is a great driver so wherever he goes he would be a positive for any team,” said Hamilton ahead of this weekend’s Emilia Romagna Grand Prix in Imola.
“I have no idea what Toto’s plans are, but for me, if it was my job and my role, I would take on a youngster, and I would take on Kimi.”
Lewis Hamilton would like to see teenager Kimi Antonelli replace him at Mercedes
Antonelli, who turns 18 in August, has recently tested Mercedes machinery in Austria and Imola.
Driver Standings ahead of the action this weekend:
1. Max Verstappen - 136 points
2. Sergio Perez - 103 points
3. Charles Leclerc - 98 points
4. Lando Norris - 83 points
5. Carlos Sainz - 83 points
6. Oscar Piastri - 41 points
7. George Russell - 37 points
8. Fernando Alonso - 33 points
9. Lewis Hamilton - 27 points
10. Yuki Tsunoda -14 points
11. Lance Stroll - 9 points
12. Oliver Bearman - 6 points
13. Nico Hulkenberg - 6 points
14. Daniel Ricciardo - 5 points
15. Esteban Ocon - 1 point
16. Kevin Magnussen - 1 point
17. Alex Albon - 0 points
18. Zhou Guanyu - 0 points
19. Pierre Gasly - 0 points
20. Valtteri Bottas - 0 points
21. Logan Sargeant - 0 points
Ollie Bearman crashes in heavy shunt in F2 practice at Imola
Ollie Bearman has been involved in a heavy crash in Formula 2 practice at Imola on Friday.
The British 18-year-old, who made his F1 debut so impressively for Ferrari in Saudi Arabia in March, lost control of his Prema car at Tamburello corner.
The nose of his Prema car connected heavily with the crash barrier but emerged from the cockpit unscathed.
The incident resulted in a red flag, stopping the session.
The crash occurred a matter of hours before Bearman takes to the track in F1 practice for Haas.
Ollie Bearman crashes in heavy shunt in F2 practice at Imola
The British 18-year-old lost control of his Prema car a matter of hours before he takes to the track in F1 practice
Another important day in the career of Ollie Bearman:
Charles Leclerc fastest in first practice!
Leclerc tops the timesheet in FP1, with his time of 1:16:990, a tenth ahead of George Russell and Carlos Sainz.
Max Verstappen down in P5 but again went off the track and into the gravel late on in that session!
Top-10: Leclerc, Russell, Sainz, Perez, Verstappen, Tsunoda, Hamilton, Norris, Piastri, Alonso
Ollie Bearman performed solidly and was praised for “doing a good job” over team radio - he finished in P15.
Max Verstappen cuts across the grass!
The three-time world champion is not a happy man in that Red Bull!
On a windy day, Verstappen loses the car slightly and opts not to take the corner....
Five minutes to go.
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