Lando Norris topped the sole practice session at the United States Grand Prix ahead of Sprint qualifying later today.
Norris was among the last of the front-runners to set a time on the rapidly evolving circuit, which was a sizzling 111 degrees F in ambient conditions of 86 degrees F. The McLaren driver’s best lap of 1m33.294s included a purple time in the final sector, though the Briton was off the road at Turn 19 on his way to the checkered flag.
Indicative of the magnitude of the track evolution was Nico Hulkenberg ending the session as Norris’s closest challenger, the Sauber driver lapping just 0.255s off the pace with a lap completed as the hour expired.
Oscar Piastri needed a second lap on soft tires late in the session to match Norris, his first lap having been well adrift of his teammate’s pace. The title leader’s second attempt put him 0.279s off the pace.
Fernando Alonso was the early pace-setter despite being among the first drivers to switch from hard tires to soft. He ended up 0.345s off the pace, in line with Aston Martin’s usual approach to show more of its hand during practice.
Max Verstappen ended the session unhappy with his car, complaining to his engineer that it “just bottoms out” and that the set-up was “way too aggressive.” The Dutchman was 0.354s off the pace and was most adrift in the middle sector, which comprises the long corners of Turn 7–9 and the long back straight.
Alex Albon was sixth for Williams and 0.626s off Norris’s benchmark.
George Russell and Lewis Hamilton were closely matched at 0.637s and 0.671s off the pace, but Mercedes and Ferrari respectively sent their drivers out on medium tires for their qualifying simulation laps. The medium is mandated for the first two parts of Sprint qualifying and is likely to be the favored tire for the Sprint race too.
Isack Hadjar was ninth, also on the medium tire, and 0.861s off the pace after complaining of a power unit problem that cost him time.
Oliver Bearman completed the top 10 for Haas at 1.074s off the pace, one spot on 0.035s ahead of teammate Esteban Ocon, who appeared to have a bizarre stuck-throttle problem earlier in the session that sent him sailing into the gravel at the first turn.
Gabriel Bortoleto was 12th for Sauber ahead of Red Bull Racing’s Yuki Tsunoda, who was 1.2s off the pace and 0.883s slower than teammate Verstappen.
Lance Stroll was 14th for Aston Martin after causing a 5m red flag when his car discarded a piece of bodywork over the curbs at Turn 19.
Liam Lawson was 15th for Racing Bulls on the medium tire ahead of Franco Colapinto, Pierre Gasly and Kimi Antonelli, who failed to get in a clean lap on the medium compound.
Carlos Sainz finished 19th without a representative time after a gearbox problem ended his session just 30 minutes in, before he had a chance to switch away from the hard tire.
Charles Leclerc was classified last after also suffering an apparent gearbox problem after bolting on the medium tire for his qualifying simulation run. He reported smelling oil before returning to pit lane.
RESULTS
