Leclerc tops Miami GP FP1 as Antonelli hits troubles

Under hot and sunny skies in the Floridian city, Leclerc looked solid across the 90-minute session, jumping to the top of the timesheets halfway through the session and fending off challenges from George Russell and Max Verstappen to end the session fastest with a 1m29.310s.

Verstappen was able to finish second, 0.297s behind the Ferrari driver, with Oscar Piastri putting in a solid session for McLaren to finish third, 0.448s back behind Leclerc’s fastest time.

The second Ferrari of Lewis Hamilton was fourth, finishing ahead of the Mercedes pair of Antonelli and Russell, with Lando Norris ending the session seventh after a disrupted final run.

Antonelli, however, wasn’t able to fully challenge for top spot, ending the session in the garage after exiting his Mercedes in the closing moments with a suspected power unit issue.

Ferrari’s pace became increasingly clear as the session evolved, with Leclerc first moving to the top on the hard compound before improving further once soft tyres were introduced in the final stages.

Verstappen briefly held the fastest time during the late-session qualifying simulations, but was quickly displaced by Leclerc as the Ferrari driver found further time, aided by a slipstream down the back straight, to set what would prove the benchmark lap.

Mercedes had shown early promise, with Antonelli briefly setting the pace with a 1m30.079s during the middle phase of the session, while Russell remained within a tenth of the leading time before the switch to soft tyres.

However, both drivers reported concerns across the session, particularly relating to engine behaviour, with Russell noting unusual turbo noises before Antonelli’s running was ultimately cut short.

McLaren also featured prominently throughout, with Norris setting the early benchmark on hard tyres before Piastri emerged as the team’s leading runner once performance laps began.

Piastri’s session was not without issue, however, reporting smoke in the cockpit during the latter stages, although he was still able to complete a representative lap to secure third.

Norris, meanwhile, looked set to challenge before encountering traffic on his final attempt, forcing him to abort after setting the fastest first sector.

Behind the leading group, the midfield appeared tightly packed as teams worked through varied programs in the sole practice session of the sprint weekend.

Pierre Gasly led the charge for Alpine in eighth, while teammate Franco Colapinto also spent time inside the top 10 before ending the session just outside it.

Isack Hadjar continued to show promising pace for Red Bull in ninth, with Carlos Sainz rounding out the top 10 for Williams.

Alexander Albon followed closely behind in 12th, highlighting a competitive showing from the Grove team, while Haas pair Oliver Bearman and Esteban Ocon, along with Audi’s Gabriel Bortoleto and Nico Hulkenberg, remained within a tightly grouped midfield pack.

Racing Bulls endured a difficult session, with Liam Lawson finishing 17th and Arvid Lindblad 21st, the British rookie spending a large part of the running in the pits as well as suffering a late lock-up.

Sergio Perez topped the battle between Cadillac and Aston Martin in 18th, one spot ahead of Fernando Alonso, with Valtteri Bottas 20th and Lance Stroll 22nd as Aston Martin again endured a troubled outing.

The session was not without its minor incidents, with several drivers struggling for grip in the hot conditions. Lock-ups were a recurring theme, particularly into Turn 1, while both Norris and Hulkenberg ran deep at various stages.

Elsewhere, teams continued to trial new components and set-up changes following the break, with Red Bull notably running updates including a revised ‘Macarena’ style rear wing similar to the version showcased by Ferrari this season, along with suspension changes.

With no further practice running ahead of sprint qualifying, teams will now have limited opportunity to address issues, placing added importance on the data gathered during the extended session in Miami.

Sprint qualifying for the Miami Grand Prix begins 4.30pm local time (6.30am AEST).

Results: Formula 1 Miami Grand Prix, Free Practice 1