Title contenders Max Verstappen and Lando Norris finished third and fourth in the only practice session ahead of the United States Grand Prix.
The Formula 1 session, back from its autumn break saw Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz post the fastest lap, narrowly ahead of teammate Charles Leclerc.
Sainz topped the timesheets at the Circuit of the Americas in Austin with a lap just 0.021 seconds quicker than Leclerc and 0.253 seconds ahead of Verstappen, who set his lap earlier in the session when the track conditions were likely slower.
Norris, trailing Verstappen by 52 points in the championship standings, was just 0.013 seconds behind the Dutchman in fourth place.
Lewis Hamilton of Mercedes had a high-speed spin at turn four but still managed to secure fifth place, while his teammate George Russell took sixth after spinning at turn one.
Both Mercedes drivers were testing the team’s latest car upgrades, as were Red Bull, McLaren, Aston Martin, and Alpine, who all brought significant updates to this race.
FP1 CLASSIFICATION@ScuderiaFerrari lead the way in our only practice session of the weekend 👏
Next up 👉 #F1Sprint qualifying #F1 #USGP pic.twitter.com/cBe2qvnQQx
— Formula 1 (@F1) OCTOBER 18, 2024
The weekend has also been marked by controversy surrounding a device on Red Bull’s car, which can reportedly adjust the height of the front floor.
In response, Red Bull pointed out that McLaren made modifications to their rear wing.
This follows discussions with the FIA after the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, where McLaren’s rear wing was seen flexing on the straight.
A McLaren spokesperson said: “As previously mentioned, McLaren proactively offered to make some minor adjustments to our rear wing following the Azerbaijan GP.
“We have made minor adjustments to all our rear wings since Baku to varying extents to ensure no further issues in this area.”
Liam Lawson, who is replacing the injured Daniel Ricciardo at Red Bull’s sister team, finished the session in 13th place, 0.130 seconds behind teammate Yuki Tsunoda, who ranked 10th.
The US Grand Prix is a sprint weekend, with a shorter race scheduled for Saturday before the main event on Sunday.
