George Russell made the perfect start to the Singapore Grand Prix weekend by topping the only practice session at Marina Bay, beating Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc and reigning world champion Lando Norris ahead of Sprint Qualifying.
Russell set the fastest lap with a 1:32.274 on soft tyres, finishing 0.198 seconds ahead of Leclerc, while Norris secured third, just 0.273 seconds off the Mercedes driver. With the Singapore weekend following the Sprint format, teams had only one hour to prepare their cars before heading into qualifying under the lights.
Ferrari also showed promising pace, with Lewis Hamilton finishing fourth and Oscar Piastri taking fifth for McLaren. Max Verstappen ended the session sixth, despite setting his fastest time on medium tyres, while championship leader Kimi Antonelli could manage only seventh.
Mercedes arrived in Singapore with its drivers running different car specifications. Russell returned to an older aerodynamic package, while Antonelli continued using the team’s latest upgrade. Russell’s fastest time will give Mercedes encouragement, although the difference in specifications and tyre compounds makes the comparison difficult.
Antonelli briefly moved to the top of the timesheets earlier in the session but was unable to improve on his final attempt after running wide at Turn 16. The Italian finished 1.251 seconds behind his teammate as he continued to work on extracting the best performance from the updated car.
Verstappen also faced an unusual problem after losing radio communication with his Red Bull team. The issue made it difficult for the team to communicate with the four time world champion during the session, although he still managed to finish inside the top six.
There was further trouble for Audi when Nico Hülkenberg stopped near the pit lane exit with a suspected gearbox problem, triggering a brief Virtual Safety Car. The German completed only 16 laps, the fewest of any driver.
Norris also had a close call while pushing around the tight street circuit, running into the escape road at Turn 9 after nearly reaching the barriers. Lance Stroll also went off track at Turn 1 as drivers struggled with the dusty surface and high temperatures.
Russell’s performance is particularly encouraging after his retirement from the previous race in Malaysia. However, the Briton faces a power unit penalty that will leave him starting Sunday’s Grand Prix from the back of the grid, regardless of where he qualifies for the main race.
With Ferrari, McLaren and Mercedes showing competitive pace, the fight for the Sprint grid is shaping up to be close. Russell has laid down an early marker, but the more representative night time conditions could change the competitive order when Sprint Qualifying gets underway.
