Abu Dhabi GP: Lewis Hamilton tops George Russell as Mercedes seal one-two in Practice One

Lewis Hamilton led Mercedes team-mate George Russell in a one-two in Practice One at the Abu Dhabi GP; world champion Max Verstappen was absent as eight teams changed their driver line-ups; watch Practice Two from the Abu Dhabi GP live on Sky Sports F1 at 1pm on Friday

Lewis Hamilton led a Mercedes one-two in first practice at the Abu Dhabi GP

Lewis Hamilton led a one-two from team-mate George Russell as Mercedes made a strong start to the weekend in first practice at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.

With Russell having sealed Mercedes’ first win of the season last weekend in Brazil, the Silver Arrows continued their strong form at the final race of the year to outpace Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc and Red Bull’s Sergio Perez, who are competing for second place in the drivers’ championship.

The fact that the session took place in the daytime, unlike qualifying and the race which will be held at night under the spectacular lights at the Yas Marina Circuit, tempers the importance of the timesheet, but the display undoubtedly maintains building momentum at Mercedes.

Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player

Williams hopeful Logan Sargeant spins out during P1 of the Abu Dhabi GP but luckily just avoids crashing into the barriers

Also notable was the absence of world champion Max Verstappen, who was one of eight drivers to sit out FP1 as teams fulfilled their remaining young driver sessions for the year.

How Mercedes compare to the Dutchman in the night-time conditions for Practice Two later on Friday, live on Sky Sports F1 at 1pm, will provide a far more reliable indicator as to what to expect for the remainder of the weekend.

More to follow…

This is a breaking news story that is being updated and more details will be published shortly. Please refresh this page for the latest updates.

Sky Sports brings you live updates as they happen. Get breaking sports news, analysis, exclusive interviews, replays and highlights.

Sky Sports is your trusted source for breaking sports news headlines and live updates. Watch live coverage of your favourite sports: Football, F1, Boxing, Cricket, Golf, Tennis, Rugby League, Rugby Union, NFL, Darts, Netball and get the latest transfers news, results, scores and more.

Visit skysports.com or the Sky Sports App for all the breaking sports news headlines. You can receive push notifications from the Sky Sports app for the latest news from your favourite sports and you can also follow @SkySportsNews on Twitter to get the latest updates.