Charles Leclerc led a dusty first practice session for Ferrari at the Las Vegas Grand Prix as the title-challenging McLaren drivers struggled for pace.
The Las Vegas street circuit started off cold and grimy as the sun set and the track opened for FP1. The ambient temperature started at a chilly 57 degrees F, while the track surface temperature was only marginally warmer at 64 degrees F.
The first half hour of the session saw the drivers cleaning the track, kicking up large plumes of dust from the cars around the track and especially along the Strip, leading to rapid improvements in lap times even as the favored medium tires wore out.
Ferrari was the first leading team to switch to soft tires for a few representative flying laps, with which Leclerc immediately felt an affinity. The Monaco native improved with every run he completed on the red-marked compound, eventually setting the benchmark at 1m34.802s before returning for a final run on mediums to end the session.
Alex Albon was surprisingly his closest challenger, although the Williams driver completed his flying lap much later in the session, in the final 10 minutes, to get the track at its best. He was 0.166 seconds off the pace.
Yuki Tsunoda was the second surprise of the session. The under-pressure Japanese driver set the third fastest lap and was 0.269 seconds off the pace as the fastest Red Bull Racing driver. Teammate Max Verstappen, third in the title standings and still within the mathematical battle for the championship, was fourth and 0.038 seconds further back.
Verstappen set just one flying lap on the soft tyres, while most other drivers, including Tsunoda, completed multiple runs. The Dutchman’s best time came after he abandoned his first flying attempt and turned it into a second warm-up lap.
Carlos Sainz was fifth in the second Williams, with a speed of 0.377 seconds, putting him ahead of the two McLaren drivers. Title leader Lando Norris was the faster of the two, finishing sixth and 0.456 seconds off the pace. The Englishman did this despite clearing the barriers early in the session while riding the mediums. His fastest time was set on his third attempt after losing his first two laps due to mistakes at Turn 12.
Oscar Piastri finished eighth and 0.192 seconds slower than Norris. The Australian raced an alternative car configuration, with McLaren giving him a lower downforce rear wing as an experiment as the team look to move past last year’s disappointing performance in Las Vegas.
Isack Hadjar was a late improver who split the McLaren pair to take seventh place, 0.497 seconds off the pace.
Last year’s dominant winner, George Russell, was ninth, 0.732 seconds off the pace. His teammate Kimi Antonelli seemed to confirm the Mercedes team’s difficulties, driving just 0.004 seconds slower to complete the top 10.
Lewis Hamilton finished eleventh after some sloppy follow-up laps on soft tires. He led Pierre Gasly, whose Alpine car looked comfortable on the streets of Las Vegas, and Liam Lawson.
Aston Martin teammates Fernando Alonso and Lance Stroll led Haas duo Oliver Bearman and Esteban Ocon and Sauber duo Nico Hulkenberg and Gabriel Bortoleto, the latter of whom will face the stewards after the session for an alleged yellow flag infringement. Franco Colapinto was last in the order, 0.4 seconds behind the peloton.
#Leclerc #pace #opening #Las #Vegas #RACER