George Russell topped opening practice for the Chinese Grand Prix with a 1m32.741s to lead a Mercedes one-two ahead of rookie team-mate Kimi Antonelli at the Shanghai International Circuit.
Lando Norris edged McLaren team-mate Oscar Piastri late in the session to secure third, finishing just over half a second off Russell’s benchmark.
Charles Leclerc was fifth for Ferrari ahead of team-mate Lewis Hamilton, while Oliver Bearman impressed in seventh for Haas ahead of Max Verstappen.
Nico Hulkenberg placed ninth for Audi ahead of Pierre Gasly, who rounded out the top 10.
Sprint qualifying for the Chinese Grand Prix begins at 3:30pm local time (6:30pm AEDT).
Results: Formula 1 Chinese Grand Prix, Free Practice 1
| Pos. | No. | Driver | Team | Time / Gap | Laps |
| 1 | 63 | George Russell | Mercedes | 1:32.741 | 29 |
| 2 | 12 | Kimi Antonelli | Mercedes | +0.120s | 30 |
| 3 | 1 | Lando Norris | McLaren | +0.555s | 29 |
| 4 | 81 | Oscar Piastri | McLaren | +0.731s | 28 |
| 5 | 16 | Charles Leclerc | Ferrari | +0.858s | 28 |
| 6 | 44 | Lewis Hamilton | Ferrari | +1.388s | 26 |
| 7 | 87 | Oliver Bearman | Haas F1 Team | +1.685s | 28 |
| 8 | 3 | Max Verstappen | Red Bull Racing | +1.800s | 24 |
| 9 | 27 | Nico Hulkenberg | Audi | +1.898s | 27 |
| 10 | 10 | Pierre Gasly | Alpine | +1.935s | 28 |
| 11 | 30 | Liam Lawson | Racing Bulls | +2.032s | 29 |
| 12 | 5 | Gabriel Bortoleto | Audi | +2.087s | 26 |
| 13 | 6 | Isack Hadjar | Red Bull Racing | +2.115s | 26 |
| 14 | 31 | Esteban Ocon | Haas F1 Team | +2.136s | 25 |
| 15 | 43 | Franco Colapinto | Alpine | +2.206s | 26 |
| 16 | 23 | Alexander Albon | Williams | +2.739s | 31 |
| 17 | 55 | Carlos Sainz | Williams | +2.938s | 18 |
| 18 | 14 | Fernando Alonso | Aston Martin | +3.115s | 18 |
| 19 | 77 | Valtteri Bottas | Cadillac | +3.316s | 25 |
| 20 | 18 | Lance Stroll | Aston Martin | +4.483s | 20 |
| 21 | 41 | Arvid Lindblad | Racing Bulls | +5.155s | 6 |
| 22 | 11 | Sergio Perez | Cadillac | +6.459s | 13 |
Discussion about this post