Japanese Grand Prix: George Russell edges out Kimi Antonelli to secure the quickest time in the opening practice session.
Mercedes’ strong performance at the start of the 2026 Formula 1 season persisted, with George Russell narrowly edging out Kimi Antonelli to secure the fastest time in the initial practice session ahead of this weekend’s Japanese Grand Prix.
During the first session of the race weekend in Suzuka, Russell and Antonelli were separated by a mere 0.026 seconds. Several teams utilized aero rakes and flow-vis paint in this session to collect additional data on their vehicles, as Formula 1 approaches a month-long hiatus following the cancellation of the two grands prix in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia that were planned for April.
McLaren aims for an improved performance in Japan after neither Lando Norris nor Oscar Piastri could participate in the race in China. They began this endeavor positively, with Norris and Piastri finishing third and fourth, respectively, surpassing Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton.
Norris and Piastri concluded the session within two-tenths of the leader, with Norris 0.132 seconds behind and Piastri 0.199 seconds off Russell’s pace. The Ferrari drivers placed fifth and sixth, with Leclerc 0.289 seconds behind Russell, and Hamilton an additional 0.085 seconds back.
Max Verstappen secured seventh place, followed by Liam Lawson, Esteban Ocon, and Arvid Lindblad, completing the top 10.
Verstappen’s teammate Isack Hadjar, who expressed concerns about cold brakes and early pulling during the session, finished in 13th place, trailing Esteban Ocon and Ollie Bearman in the two Haas cars.
It was another challenging practice session for Williams, as Alex Albon went off into the gravel early on. Albon later collided with Cadillac’s Sergio Perez towards the end of the session, resulting in debris on the track, an incident that the stewards announced they would review after the session.
The second practice session is scheduled to commence at 3 p.m. local time (6 a.m. GMT).
Source: espn.com
