George Russell fastest in first-ever Madrid F1 practice

George Russell led team-mate Andrea Kimi Antonelli in a Mercedes 1-2 during the first Formula 1 practice session at the new Madrid track. 

Russell, who is 66 points behind Antonelli in the championship heading into this weekend’s Spanish Grand Prix, was 0.286 seconds faster than the Italian who claimed a stunning comeback victory from 19th on the grid last time out at Monza. 

Charles Leclerc, who has been forced to use an old power unit in Madrid due to damage concerns after his huge race-ending crash at Monza, ended up third-fastest, 0.459 seconds off the pace. 

Team-mate Lewis Hamilton was 0.543s adrift in fourth but the seven-time world champion did not set his fastest time on the soft tyre after hitting traffic on several runs. 

Max Verstappen was sixth-fastest and over six tenths off the pace in his Red Bull, ahead of reigning world champion Lando Norris, and Arvid Lindblad’s Racing Bulls.

Oscar Piastri was eighth in the second McLaren, with Nico Hulkenberg and Liam Lawson completing the top-10 for Audi and Red Bull respectively. 

Despite all the pre-weekend build-up being dominated by concerns about the Madring being a “car killer”, there was not a single crash or red flag during the opening hour of practice. 

Leclerc came close at Turn 17 when he locked up and ran deep into the corner, while Hamilton had several close calls at the same corner throughout the session. 

Traffic also proved to be an issue, with several drivers forced to back out of their laps after near-misses with rivals. 

Hamilton was caught up in three incidents, including a near-miss with Williams driver Carlos Sainz through the banked, high-speed La Monumental corner. 

Fernando Alonso, who set the 15th-fastest time, stopped on track in his Aston Martin right at the end of FP1.