F1 practice LIVE: Charles Leclerc fastest in FP2 as Oscar Piastri signs for McLaren

Some breaking news on about the contract for Oscar Piastri.

The Contract Recognition Board decision on Alpine vs Oscar Piastri is: “The only Contract to be recognised by is the Contract between McLaren Racing Limited and Mr Piastri dated 4th July 2022. Mr Piastri is entitled to drive for McLaren Racing for the 2023 and 2024 seasons”

Red Bull boss, Christian Horner, was asked whether Sergio Perez has any issues during the first practice session around the Zandvoort circuit after he only managed to set the seventh fastest lap time.

“Nothing specific. He’s just trying to find the balance.” replied Horner.

“Sergio usually feels his way into FP1 and there were certain things he wasn’t happy with on the car. I think there will be a few set-up changes with his engineering team between now and second session.”

As the second practice session of the Dutch Grand Prix weekend draws closer here’s a reminder of how things finished earlier today:

1. George Russell (Mercedes) - 1:12.455

2. Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes) - 1:12.695

3. Carlos Sainz (Ferrari) - 1:12.845

4. Lando Norris (McLaren) - 1:12.929

5. Daniel Ricciardo (McLaren) - 1:13.077

6. Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) - 1:13.127

7. Sergio Perez (Red Bull) - 1:13.416

8. Fernando Alonso (Alpine) - 1:13.633

9. Esteban Ocon (Alpine) - 1:13.963

10. Alexander Albon (Williams) - 1:14.063

Max Verstappen finished 19th due to an issue with his gearbox that should be fixed in time for FP2.

Ever wondered what it’s like to be a Formula 1 driver? Check out this helmet camera footage from one of Fernando Alonso’s laps during FP1.

Team Principal Toto Wolff says Mercedes are ‘in the dungeon’ after a difficult season that has seen them well off the pace of the championship leaders Red Bull.

“They say you never lose you learn, I can tell you it is f****** difficult,” Wolff said after the Belgium GP in which Lewis Hamilton crashed out on the first lap and George Russell finished fourth.

“All these nice Instagram posts and everything we have talked about over the eight years, about how we are going to take this when you arrive in the dungeon.

“To stick to your principles and your values, to keep the spirit up and continue to relentlessly seek to get better? Phew. There is more to write a book about this year than there is about the last eight years.

“It’s very difficult to cope with these swings. We had a totally sub-par performance in qualifying, then in the race sometimes we go three seconds a lap faster. There are big question marks about what is going on.

“It’s not where we should be with the structure and knowledge to understand a racing car but we don’t with this one.”

Max Verstappen was hailed as being in a “league of his own” and “on another planet” after he raced from 14th to victory at the Belgian Grand Prix.

The Red Bull driver is closing in on his second world championship after moving 98 points clear of Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc – the equivalent of nearly four victories with eight fixtures remaining.

Verstappen was stripped of pole position and demoted down the grid after taking on his fourth engine of the season at Spa-Francorchamps, one more than is allocated for the season.

But the 24-year-old was able to take advantage of a chaotic opening lap after Lewis Hamilton and Fernando Alonso tangled at Les Combes to move up five positions. He was then third by the end of lap eight before he usurped team-mate Sergio Perez for the lead on lap 12.

Toto Wolff has revealed that Mercedes need to make a decision on what direction they take on their 2023 car “in the next weeks”.

The Constructors’ Champions, who have won the title in the last eight years, have struggled to extract performance out of their W13 car this season and are yet to win a race.

The Silver Arrows currently lie third in the Constructors’ Standings, 159 points behind leaders Red Bull, with their unique “no sidepods” 2022 design failing to match the lap-by-lap speed of Red Bull and Ferrari.

As such with eight races left this season, focus has already turned to next year as Mercedes look to challenge regularly at the top of the timesheet once again but Wolff admits it is a vital call the team has to make given the “massive swings in performance” seen this year.

Fernando Alonso collected a signed Lewis Hamilton cap in a show of apology to the Mercedes driver. Alonso, 41, called Hamilton an “idiot” and said the Briton can only race from the front following a first-lap collision at Spa-Francorchamps.

On Thursday, Alpine’s Alonso said he would issue a face-to-face apology to Hamilton while conducting their television interviews for this weekend’s Dutch Grand Prix.

But Hamilton, who addressed the written media 90 minutes after Alonso’s print session, said: “We were standing right next to each other in the TV pen, but no, [he didn’t apologise]. It is not a thing for me, it doesn’t change anything or affect me in the slightest.

“I am always trying to be a better driver and I know I have a lot of young kids following me on social media, and the steps I try to take in my behaviour are important. I am always trying to learn with that and be better.”

However, moments after Hamilton spoke, Alonso was pictured leaving the Mercedes motorhome armed with a black Mercedes cap, complete with Hamilton’s signature, which had been reserved for the Spaniard. It is understood Hamilton and Alonso spoke for a couple of minutes, with the latter apologising.

Martin Brundle insists Fernando Alonso’s stinging criticism of Lewis Hamilton in wake of the pair’s crash at the Belgian Grand Prix was “wholly inaccurate and unfair.”

Hamilton’s Mercedes leapt up into the air after clashing with Alonso’s Alpine on the opening lap of the race at Spa-Francorchamps, causing damage to Hamilton’s car which resulted in his retirement from the race - his first DNF of a difficult 2022 season.

The seven-time world champion later admitted responsibility for the incident, saying Alonso was “in his blind spot”, but straight after the incident Alonso vented his fury on team radio saying: “What an idiot closing the door from the outside, I mean, we had a mega start but this guy only knows how to drive and start in first.”

Yet former F1 driver and Sky Sports pundit Brundle shot down those claims, referring back to Hamilton’s sensational win in Brazil last year where he recovered from last after a disqualification in qualifying to win the Grand Prix after moving up the field in the sprint race and Sunday race.

The Belgium Grand Prix was a tough one to take for McLaren whose drivers, Lando Norris and Daniel Ricciardo, both finished outside of the points whilst close rivals Alpine ended up with P5 and P7 finishes.

Alpine’s double-points finish last weekend leaves them 20 points ahead in the fight for fourth in the constructors’ championship.

“I wouldn’t say [the race was] necessarily much worse than others. I think we ended the first half of the season pretty well in Budapest, of course that gets your hopes up and you gain confidence – which is a good thing,” said Norris.

“[Spa] was made worse by having the engine penalty. I think I’d have finished in the points and in qualifying probably qualified seventh or so.

WIt’s not like things are terrible, I think we’d have had a reasonable weekend by our standard; what made things worse is that Alpine performed well and made things harder for us.

“Things like Spa are good for us because it makes us realise where we are, what we struggle with compared to other teams, and having that little realisation check is good for us because we are a very long way away from where we need to be.”