Ferrari’s Sainz and Leclerc take charge in FP1 as Max and Lando Norris continue to….read more
Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc dominated the first and only practice session for the United States Grand Prix at the Circuit of the Americas in Austin, Texas. The two Ferrari drivers set the fastest times, outpacing their rivals ahead of what promises to be an exciting weekend of racing.
Max Verstappen of Red Bull, who has been the standout performer this season, managed to take third place in the session after switching to the soft compound tires. However, it wasn’t an easy ride for the Red Bull driver, as he struggled with the tire temperatures, commenting that the softs felt cold at the start of his lap. Despite this, his time of 1:33.855 placed him just behind the Ferraris, keeping him in the hunt for a strong performance during qualifying and the race.
McLaren’s Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri had a difficult session, encountering issues that left them trailing behind the front-runners. Both drivers fought through a scrappy practice but were unable to break into the top three. Meanwhile, Mercedes drivers Lewis Hamilton and George Russell also faced challenges during the session. Both drivers struggled with spins early on as they navigated the resurfaced Circuit of the Americas track. Despite these issues, Hamilton and Russell still managed to place 6th and 7th respectively by the end of the session, signaling that Mercedes could still be competitive as the weekend progresses.
It’s been a long gap since the last race in Singapore, but the anticipation is high for the final stretch of the 2024 Formula 1 season, which features six remaining races. The practice session in Austin was the first time the drivers returned to the track after the break, and it didn’t take long for the action to heat up.
Lando Norris was the first driver to take to the track for McLaren, setting the early pace. However, it was Max Verstappen, along with Mercedes’ George Russell and Lewis Hamilton, who quickly took control of the session, all running on hard tires in the early stages. Last year’s pole sitter, Charles Leclerc, soon joined the fray, posting a time of 1:36.724, almost a full second ahead of the rest of the field. His teammate, Carlos Sainz, followed closely behind to take second place in the early going.
As the session progressed and the track began to rubber in, lap times continued to improve. Red Bull’s decision to switch to soft tires gave Verstappen a temporary advantage as he posted the fastest lap with a time of 1:33.855. Sergio Perez, also on the hard tires, matched Sainz’s earlier time to share second place with the Ferrari driver.
With just 15 minutes left, other teams began switching to soft compounds. Williams drivers Alex Albon and Franco Colapinto joined the fray, with Colapinto making an impressive leap to fifth place. Albon, however, struggled to maintain his momentum after running wide at turn 19.
The final minutes saw a flurry of fast laps as teams looked to finalize their setups. Sainz took control at the top of the timing sheets, with Fernando Alonso jumping to third in his Aston Martin. Hamilton briefly surged ahead of Verstappen before the Red Bull driver reclaimed his spot as the second-fastest on the grid, although he still remained 0.25 seconds behind Sainz’s best time of 1:33.602.
