Manor Marussia F1 Team reserve driver Fabio Leimer made his long-awaited Formula One debut in FP1 for the Hungarian Grand Prix.
The 2013 GP2 Series champion timed the MR03B chassis in at 1:30.631 in the MR03B, nearly a full second behind teammate Will Stevens.
Leimer’s session included two red flags for track cleanup, but the Swiss native managed 18 laps in extremely hot temperatures.
“It was very good to get my first FP1 opportunity with the team and my thanks to them for doing this on a difficult weekend,” said Leimer in a team statement.
“I was pleased that I was able to get up to speed quite quickly. The car felt good and it was nice to make a very hands-on contribution to the start of our race weekend in terms of feedback to help the team move in a good direction. It’s good to be back at the wheel of a racing car again.”
The 26-year-old is set to make more FP1 sessions later this year, but it is not yet known when the next time will be.
Image: Manor Grand Prix Racing Ltd
