Max Verstappen in action during opening practice for the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix at Yas Marina Circuit. Getty Images
Max Verstappen in action during opening practice for the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix at Yas Marina Circuit. Getty Images
Max Verstappen in action during opening practice for the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix at Yas Marina Circuit. Getty Images
Max Verstappen in action during opening practice for the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix at Yas Marina Circuit. Getty Images

Red Bull's Max Verstappen tops opening practice at Abu Dhabi Grand Prix


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Max Verstappen and Red Bull Racing dominated the opening practice session for the Etihad Airways Abu Dhabi Grand Prix as world champion Lewis Hamilton struggled.

Verstappen tok the headlines on Thursday with a vehement response of his behaviour towards Force India driver Esteban Ocon in Brazil two weeks ago, but he did his talking on the track on Friday afternoon.

His lap of 1 minute, 38.491 seconds was the quickest of the 90-minute session, with teammate Daniel Ricciardo second fastest, 0.454 secs adrift of the Dutchman.

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Abu Dhabi Grand Prix Weekend - all the latest updates on and off the track

Abu Dhabi GP talking points: Ferrari's big chance and Robert Kubica in action

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Hamilton, who sealed his fifth Formula One drivers' championship in Mexico in October, was fourth quickest, behind Mercedes teammate Valtteri Bottas.

The Briton, a three-time winner at Yas Marina Circuit in the past, was a second off Verstappen's pace and said on the pit radio he was "quite unhappy".

Ocon was a surprise fifth for Force India, ahead of Kevin Magnussen's Haas. Ferrari pair Kimi Raikkonen and Sebastian Vettel were seventh and eighth respectively.

Sauber's Marcus Ericsson, who is leaving F1 to compete in the IndyCar series in the United States next year, had the biggest drama of the session.

The Swede spun on the exit of Turn 1 and hit the barriers, but he kept the engine running and was able to reverse back on the racing line and continue, albeit with a broken front wing and a puncture.

Robert Kubica, whose return to F1 as a full-time driver in 2019 was confirmed by Williams on Thursday, was slowest of the 20 runners.

The Pole, who stepped in for Sergey Sirotkin in the session, warned on Thursday not to expect a rapid pace as he worked on car set-up, and that proved the case as he was 4.5 seconds off Verstappen's fastest time.

The second practice session begins at 5pm and will also last 90 minutes. Qualifying is on at Saturday at 5pm, with the 55-lap race beginning at 5.10pm on Sunday.

COMPANY%20PROFILE
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ECompany%20name%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Clinicy%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarted%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%202017%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFounders%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Prince%20Mohammed%20Bin%20Abdulrahman%2C%20Abdullah%20bin%20Sulaiman%20Alobaid%20and%20Saud%20bin%20Sulaiman%20Alobaid%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Riyadh%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ENumber%20of%20staff%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%2025%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ESector%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20HealthTech%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETotal%20funding%20raised%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20More%20than%20%2410%20million%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestors%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Middle%20East%20Venture%20Partners%2C%20Gate%20Capital%2C%20Kafou%20Group%20and%20Fadeed%20Investment%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Cryopreservation: A timeline
  1. Keyhole surgery under general anaesthetic
  2. Ovarian tissue surgically removed
  3. Tissue processed in a high-tech facility
  4. Tissue re-implanted at a time of the patient’s choosing
  5. Full hormone production regained within 4-6 months
SERIE A FIXTURES

Saturday

AC Milan v Sampdoria (2.30pm kick-off UAE)

Atalanta v Udinese (5pm)

Benevento v Parma (5pm)

Cagliari v Hellas Verona (5pm)

Genoa v Fiorentina (5pm)

Lazio v Spezia (5pm)

Napoli v Crotone (5pm)

Sassuolo v Roma (5pm)

Torino v Juventus (8pm)

Bologna v Inter Milan (10.45pm)

Brief scores:

Toss: South Africa, chose to field

Pakistan: 177 & 294

South Africa: 431 & 43-1

Man of the Match: Faf du Plessis (South Africa)

Series: South Africa lead three-match series 2-0

UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
  • Priority access to new homes from participating developers
  • Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
  • Flexible payment plans from developers
  • Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
  • DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
THE%20SPECS
%3Cp%3EBattery%3A%2060kW%20lithium-ion%20phosphate%3Cbr%3EPower%3A%20Up%20to%20201bhp%3Cbr%3E0%20to%20100kph%3A%207.3%20seconds%3Cbr%3ERange%3A%20418km%3Cbr%3EPrice%3A%20From%20Dh149%2C900%3Cbr%3EAvailable%3A%20Now%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
The specs

AT4 Ultimate, as tested

Engine: 6.2-litre V8

Power: 420hp

Torque: 623Nm

Transmission: 10-speed automatic

Price: From Dh330,800 (Elevation: Dh236,400; AT4: Dh286,800; Denali: Dh345,800)

On sale: Now

Specs

Engine: Duel electric motors
Power: 659hp
Torque: 1075Nm
On sale: Available for pre-order now
Price: On request

Pakistan Super League

Previous winners

2016 Islamabad United

2017 Peshawar Zalmi

2018 Islamabad United

2019 Quetta Gladiators

 

Most runs Kamran Akmal – 1,286

Most wickets Wahab Riaz –65

The National Archives, Abu Dhabi

Founded over 50 years ago, the National Archives collects valuable historical material relating to the UAE, and is the oldest and richest archive relating to the Arabian Gulf.

Much of the material can be viewed on line at the Arabian Gulf Digital Archive - https://www.agda.ae/en

Key facilities
  • Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
  • Premier League-standard football pitch
  • 400m Olympic running track
  • NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
  • 600-seat auditorium
  • Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
  • An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
  • Specialist robotics and science laboratories
  • AR and VR-enabled learning centres
  • Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
COMPANY PROFILE

Name: Qyubic
Started: October 2023
Founder: Namrata Raina
Based: Dubai
Sector: E-commerce
Current number of staff: 10
Investment stage: Pre-seed
Initial investment: Undisclosed 

How Beautiful this world is!
Brief scoreline:

Wales 1

James 5'

Slovakia 0

Man of the Match: Dan James (Wales)

ESSENTIALS

The flights

Emirates flies from Dubai to Phnom Penh via Yangon from Dh2,700 return including taxes. Cambodia Bayon Airlines and Cambodia Angkor Air offer return flights from Phnom Penh to Siem Reap from Dh250 return including taxes. The flight takes about 45 minutes.

The hotels

Rooms at the Raffles Le Royal in Phnom Penh cost from $225 (Dh826) per night including taxes. Rooms at the Grand Hotel d'Angkor cost from $261 (Dh960) per night including taxes.

The tours

A cyclo architecture tour of Phnom Penh costs from $20 (Dh75) per person for about three hours, with Khmer Architecture Tours. Tailor-made tours of all of Cambodia, or sites like Angkor alone, can be arranged by About Asia Travel. Emirates Holidays also offers packages.