Lando Norris topped the final first free practice session of the F1 season, going just eight-thousandths of a second quicker than Max Verstappen, who was second fastest.
Charles Leclerc was third on the timing board at the Yas Marina Circuit, ahead of Kimi Antonelli. Nico Hulkenberg rounded out the top five.
FP1 at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix routinely sees a swathe of rookies participating, and this campaign was no different, with nine across eight teams — Aston Martin opting to run new reserve driver Jak Crawford and academy member Cian Shields in place of Fernando Alonso and Lance Stroll.
Stake and Mercedes have both already satisfied the rookie practice criteria; Gabriel Bortoleto and Antonelli covering two of the mandated four sessions at each team.
New Racing Bulls driver Arvid Lindblad took Yuki Tsunoda's seat for the opening hour of running. The 18-year-old finished the session P15.
Oliver Bearman, who had looked competitive in eighth, had to retire his Haas from the session with around 20 minutes to go after persistent issues. The American squad later confirmed it was due to a problem with a sensor.
Check out the full results from FP1 at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix below!
Result Free practice 1 - Abu Dhabi
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