Charles Leclerc tops both Friday practice sessions in Austin; Ferrari driver edged out Kimi Antonelli in second practice; Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc edged out Kimi Antonelli to complete a Friday practice double at the United States Grand Prix. After narrowly topping Red Bull’s Max Verstappen in the opening session, Leclerc improved by almost eight tenths of a second later in the day to finish 0.042s clear of Mercedes’ Antonelli, who could become Formula 1’s youngest ever world champion on Sunday. Verstappen appears to be in contention to extend his streak of two successive victories after finishing the second session in third, within a couple of tenths of Leclerc’s leading time of 1:35.291s. Lewis Hamilton was unable to match his team-mate Leclerc’s pace all day, and had to settle for fourth as he finished more than six tenths back from the Monegasque.
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player George Russell was fifth in the other Mercedes, but will also be looking for overnight answers as he finished seven tenths back from his team-mate. Antonelli could clinch his maiden title if he wins on Sunday, and Russell and Hamilton do not score sufficient points to stay in mathematical contention. The 20-year-old Italian had to overcome some early disruption as his seat became loose, which left him needing to pit and leave the car for the best part of 10 minutes as the issue was repaired. McLaren suffered a disappointing day as Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri finished seventh and eighth, with both failing to deliver clean laps on their soft-tyre runs.
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player Ferrari, McLaren and Red Bull have each brought upgrades to the event, while Mercedes are still trying to optimise the package they brought two rounds ago in Malaysia that has so far failed to deliver the improvement they anticipated. Antonelli said: “It was a bit of a difficult start because the seat was not fixed properly, so it kind of felt a bit like being on a rollercoaster on lap one, with the seat moving in the high speed. “We lost a little bit of time, but it was still a good recovery. I felt better in the car compared to FP1.
There’s still lots of work to do but it was a good step forward, and now we’ll try to improve even further for tomorrow.” Ferrari’s package, which featured updates to the car’s floor, sidepod and diffuser, appeared to offer hope the Italian team could end a run of eight races without victory, but Leclerc preached caution after his strong day. Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player “The feeling is quite good, but we need to be careful,” Leclerc said. “It’s only Friday and we are seeing what we expected but, again, it’s definitely not what everybody thinks in terms of upgrade and lap time gain. “But we shouldn’t carry too high expectations going into tomorrow because I feel like the others have more potential to unlock for sure.
Kimi and Max seem to be very, very strong, The McLaren I don’t really know yet, I don’t think they put everything together yet. But Kimi and Max will definitely be up there.” Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player There was early drama in the session as Russell was investigated for forcing Leclerc off track, but the stewards decided that there had been “nothing dangerous” in the manoeuvre as no further action was taken. Verstappen’s team-mate Isack Hadjar cut a frustrated figure over team radio as he could only manage ninth, with Racing Bulls’ Liam Lawson taking advantage to claim an impressive sixth. Williams suffered a torrid afternoon as Carlos Sainz was 20th and team-mate Alex Albon 22nd as their car struggled to meet the challenges of the high-speed circuit.
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player Saturday October 246.15pm: United States Grand Prix Practice Three (session starts at 6.30pm)8.30pm: United States Grand Prix Qualifying build-up*10pm: UNITED STATES GRAND PRIX QUALIFYING*12am: F1 Academy Race 2*12.45am: Ted’s Qualifying Notebook* Sunday October 255pm: F1 Academy Race 36.30pm: Grand Prix Sunday: United States GP build-up*8pm: THE UNITED STATES GRAND PRIX*10pm: Chequered Flag: United States GP reaction11pm: Ted’s Notebook *also on Sky Sports Main Event Formula 1 heads to The Americas for another triple-header with the United States Grand Prix in Austin up first this weekend, live on Sky Sports F1.
