Norris leads only free practice in the USA; Bortoleto is 12th and his teammate is in second place

a Sauber teammate, was the highlight of the only free practice session for the United States GP, on the Circuit of the Americas. When he was already imagining closing the day with a one-two finish, the German made an impressive lap and positioned himself among the cars of the Constructors’ champion and the leader among the drivers. he came first, with Piastri third. The Brazilian representative ended up in 12th place. This Friday, the grid will be defined for this Saturday’s sprint race. The teams took to the track in intense heat. And with the drivers taking advantage of the first minutes to learn how to behave on a challenging Circuit of the Americas precisely because of the weather conditions.

Trying to overtake McLaren in the fight for the drivers’ title, Red Bull dominated the first laps, with Max Verstappen and Yuki Tsunoda sharing the first two positions. Without ever racing or training on the North American circuit, despite many hours on the simulator, Bortoleto only appeared in last place, suffering from the thermal sensation of 43 degrees. The time was bad, with more than two seconds behind the four-time world champion. Nico Hülkenberg, his teammate, for example, was in ninth place.

A mistake by Lance Stroll, who left the track, caused a piece of his Aston Martin to fall onto the track and require a red flag in practice. Despite the training stoppage, the clock did not stop, which reduced the number of teams’ laps. Season leader, Piastri was only in 15th place, while his teammate, Norris, was in fifth. Winner of the Singapore GP two weeks ago, George Russell was in third place, while Lewis Hamilton took the lead in the Ferrari with 1min34s857, the official track record.

The activity returned for its final part with only half of the drivers on the track and all the teams betting on the hard tire, the most resistant. Then in sixth, Carlos Sainz retired early with problems with the Williams car’s gearbox. Ocon ended up in the gravel. After a measured start, McLaren improved and Norris moved up to second place, with Piastri fifth. Bortoleto improved a little, rising to 17th place, still below expectations. With less than 14 minutes to go, only the Haas cars were on the track.

The return, with 10 minutes remaining, was with several teams using the red, soft and mandatory tire for the day of the race. The thermal sensation increased to 45º, exactly what was predicted when the grid was defined, this Saturday.

Russell beat Hamilton’s time, with 1min34s675, and the fight for the top promised to be fierce. Tsunoda, Verstappen and Alonso also got a taste of first place. Bortoleto came to occupy fifth position in huge changes in the Top 10. McLaren needed to show service with a faster tire and Norris did not disappoint, with 1min33s294 and the lead, followed by the surprising Hülkenberg and his teammate Piastri.

Check out the results of the 1st free practice session of the United States GP:

1º – Lando Norris (ING/McLaren), 1min33s294

2º – Nico Hülkenberg (ALE/Sauber), 1min33s549

3rd – Oscar Piastri (AUS/McLaren), 1min33s573

4º – Fernando Alonso (ESP/Aston Martin), 1min33s693

5º – Max Verstappen (HOL/Red Bull), 1min33s648

6th – Alexander Albon (TAI/Williams), 1min33s920

7º – George Russell (ING/Mercedes), 1min33s931

8º – Lewis Hamilton (ING/Ferrari), 1min32s965

9º – Isack Hadjar (FRA/RB), 1min34s155

10º – Oliver Bearman (ING/Haas), 1min34s333

11º – Esteban Ocon (FRA/Haas), 1min34s368

12th – Gabriel Bortoleto (BRA/Sauber), 1min34s478

13º – Yuki Tsunoda (JAP/Red Bull), 1min34531

14º – Lance Stroll (CAN/Aston Martin), 1min34s610

15o – Liam Lawson (NZL/RB), 1min34s619

16th – Franco Colapinto (ARG/Alpine), 1min34s653

17th – Pierre Gasly (FRA/Alpine), 1min34s665

18o – Kimi Antonelli (now/Mercedes), 1min34S7

19º – Carlos Sainz Jr. (ESP/Williams), 1min35s874

20th – Charles Leclerc (MON/Ferrari), 1min36s080

*With information from Estadão Conteúdo
Published by Fernando Dias