F1: Mercedes driver Nyck de Vries fastest on Day 1 at Abu Dhabi

While IndyCar driver Pato O’Ward was fastest in the morning, in the afternoon, driving the superior Mercedes car, reserve driver Nyck de Vries set the fastest overall time at the Yas Marina Circuit on Tuesday.

de Vries set a time of 1m23.194s as the young drivers running 2021-spec cars finished in the leading positions.

AlphaTauri’s Liam Lawson was second, 1.3s behind de Vries, ahead of Alpine’s Oscar Piastri and McLaren IndyCar front-runner Pato O’Ward.

IndyCar Driver not strong Enough

“Today was awesome! The car exceeded my expectations of what it’s capable of – it’s ridiculous how much grip there is, specifically in the fast corners – it’s unbelievable,” said Pato O’Ward.

“For sure, in the morning, my head was still on my neck. But towards the end of the day, I really think what ended up limiting me being able to go quicker was just not being able to hold my head up and see fully where I was going. My head actually was just looking down because I couldn’t hold it up! It’s such an awesome car. What a great experience, I didn’t want the day to finish. I’d like to thank Zak, Andreas and everyone in the F1 team for supporting me through this incredible day.”

Note: See Photos Below Table

Day 1 Overall Results

Pos Driver Team Time Laps Car
1. Nyck de Vries Mercedes 1m23.194s 77 2021
2. Liam Lawson AlphaTauri 1m24.517s 125 2021
3. Oscar Piastri Alpine 1m24.523s 131 2021
4. Pato O’Ward McLaren 1m24.607s 92 2021
5. Guanyu Zhou Alfa Romeo 1m25.142s 119 2021
6. Juri Vips Red Bull 1m25.198s 97 2021
7. Nick Yelloly Aston Martin 1m25.333s 118 2021
8. Daniel Ricciardo McLaren 1m26.252s 95 2018 Mule
9. Lance Stroll Aston Martin 1m26.579s 143 2018 Mule
10. Robert Shwartzman Ferrari 1m26.694s 73 2021
11. Charles Leclerc Ferrari 1m26.989s 87 2018 Mule
12. Valtteri Bottas Alfa Romeo 1m27.183s 127 2018 Mule
13. Antonio Fuoco Ferrari 1m27.324s 146 2021
14. Yuki Tsunoda AlphaTauri 1m27.348s 131 2018 Mule
15. Logan Sargeant Williams 1m27.476s 92 2021
16. Esteban Ocon Alpine 1m27.553s 128 2018 Mule
17. Max Verstappen Red Bull 1m28.013s 124 2018 Mule
18. George Russell Mercedes 1m28.062s 132 2018 Mule
19. Mick Schumacher Haas 1m28.499s 100 2018 Mule

 

Nyck de Vries. Photo courtesy of Pirelli
George Russell
Antonio Fuoco, Scuderia Ferrari Press Office
Robert Shwartzman, Scuderia Ferrari Press Office
Max Verstappen. Photo courtesy of Pirelli
Valtteri Bottas. Photo courtesy of Pirelli
Nyck de Vries. Photo courtesy of Pirelli
Mick Schumacher. Photo courtesy of Pirelli
Yuki Tsunoda. Photo courtesy of Pirelli
Lance Stroll, Aston Martin AMR21 during the Abu Dhabi November testing at Yas Marina Circuit on Tuesday December 14, 2021 in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. (Photo by Zak Mauger / LAT Images)
YAS MARINA CIRCUIT, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES – DECEMBER 14: George Russell, Mercedes W12 during the Abu Dhabi November testing at Yas Marina Circuit on Tuesday December 14, 2021 in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. (Photo by Zak Mauger / LAT Images)
YAS MARINA CIRCUIT, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES – DECEMBER 14: Antonio Fuoco, Ferrari SF21 during the Abu Dhabi November testing at Yas Marina Circuit on Tuesday December 14, 2021 in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. (Photo by Zak Mauger / LAT Images)
Max Verstappen. Photo courtesy of Pirelli
Yuki Tsunoda. Photo courtesy of Pirelli
Valtteri Bottas. Photo courtesy of Pirelli
YAS MARINA CIRCUIT, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES – DECEMBER 14: Charles Leclerc, Ferrari SF21 during the Abu Dhabi November testing at Yas Marina Circuit on Tuesday December 14, 2021 in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. (Photo by Zak Mauger / LAT Images)
Max Verstappen. Photo courtesy of Pirelli
YAS MARINA CIRCUIT, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES – DECEMBER 14: Esteban Ocon, Alpine A521 during the Abu Dhabi November testing at Yas Marina Circuit on Tuesday December 14, 2021 in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. (Photo by Mark Sutton / LAT Images)
Mick Schumacher. Photo courtesy of Pirelli
YAS MARINA CIRCUIT, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES – DECEMBER 14: Daniel Ricciardo, McLaren MCL35M during the Abu Dhabi November testing at Yas Marina Circuit on Tuesday December 14, 2021 in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. (Photo by Zak Mauger / LAT Images)
YAS MARINA CIRCUIT, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES – DECEMBER 14: George Russell, Mercedes W12 during the Abu Dhabi November testing at Yas Marina Circuit on Tuesday December 14, 2021 in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. (Photo by Mark Sutton / LAT Images)
Max Verstappen. Photo courtesy of Pirelli
Nyck de Vries. Photo courtesy of Pirelli
YAS MARINA CIRCUIT, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES – DECEMBER 14: Juri Vips, Red Bull Racing RB16B during the Abu Dhabi November testing at Yas Marina Circuit on Tuesday December 14, 2021 in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. (Photo by Zak Mauger / LAT Images)
YAS MARINA CIRCUIT, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES – DECEMBER 14: Logan Sargeant, Williams FW43B during the Abu Dhabi November testing at Yas Marina Circuit on Tuesday December 14, 2021 in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. (Photo by Mark Sutton / LAT Images)
YAS MARINA CIRCUIT, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES – DECEMBER 14: Antonio Fuoco, Ferrari SF21 during the Abu Dhabi November testing at Yas Marina Circuit on Tuesday December 14, 2021 in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. (Photo by Zak Mauger / LAT Images)
YAS MARINA CIRCUIT, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES – DECEMBER 14: Guanyu Zhou, Alfa Romeo Racing C41 during the Abu Dhabi November testing at Yas Marina Circuit on Tuesday December 14, 2021 in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. (Photo by Zak Mauger / LAT Images)
YAS MARINA CIRCUIT, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES – DECEMBER 14: Oscar Piastri, Alpine A521 during the Abu Dhabi November testing at Yas Marina Circuit on Tuesday December 14, 2021 in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. (Photo by Mark Sutton / LAT Images)
YAS MARINA CIRCUIT, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES – DECEMBER 14: Pato O’Ward, McLaren MCL35M during the Abu Dhabi November testing at Yas Marina Circuit on Tuesday December 14, 2021 in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. (Photo by Mark Sutton / LAT Images)
Nyck de Vries. Photo courtesy of Pirelli