P1racenews AI automatic summary:
Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton was downbeat after a curtailed day of practice in Abu Dhabi and said that getting into Q3
Lewis Hamilton missed out on running in FP1, giving way to young driver Frederik Vesti. In FP2, two red flags interrupted his running time, one caused by Carlos Sainz’s crash and the other by Nico Hulkenberg’s contact with the wall. Hamilton described Friday as “not the greatest of days” but hopes for more running on Saturday. He admits that qualifying in Abu Dhabi is challenging and is not hopeful for a Q3 appearance. However, teammate George Russell has a more positive outlook, finishing FP2 with the sixth fastest time and feeling good about the long run pace. Mercedes aims to maximize performance in Qualifying to gain an advantage over Ferrari in the Constructors’ Championship.
