Dutch GP: George Russell fastest in FP1 at Zandvoort

Mercedes driver George Russell topped FP1 ahead of team-mate Lewis Hamilton, with Max Verstappen hit with a gearbox issue at the Dutch GP.

The Dutch crowd are already packing out the grandstands here at Zandvoort with them hoping to get a glimpse of their world champion in his Red Bull.

Indeed, they have huge hopes of seeing a home victory with him in fine form after a superb win at Spa last time out but those hopes took a slight dent during FP1, with Max having to pull to the side of the circuit and retire from the session, reporting a gearbox problem.

It’s something that Christian Horner would say post-session that Red Bull hope they can fix, and that would certainly be something most of the support here would hope for as well as they cheer on their local hero.

Max’s woes for the session, meanwhile, were the opposite to how Mercedes will likely be feeling after FP1, with both their drivers in the top two.

The Silver Arrows had a weekend to forget last time out in Spa in many respects and with their high standards in mind, with them well off of the ultimate pace that Max set as he dominated the entire event.

Things might be a little better for them in Zandvoort, though, with the tight and twisty nature of the circuit, as was the case at the Hungaroring, lending itself to the Mercedes’ set-up.

Indeed, it was Russell in P1 ahead of Hamilton and they’d certainly take that in qualifying, but it remains to be seen if they can maintain their advantage.

Behind them was the Ferrari of Carlos Sainz whilst the McLaren pair of Lando Norris and Daniel Ricciardo were ahead of Charles Leclerc, suggesting it could be a better weekend for the Woking team compared to Spa as well, as they look to gain ground on Alpine.

Behind Leclerc in