The Cavallino, which has brought many updates to the SF-26, starts well with the Monegasque preceding Verstappen (Red Bull) and Piastri (McLaren). The Mercedes driver from Bologna was immediately quick but then slowed down by a problem with the power unit, Russell sixth
Formula 1 is back. He did it with the only free practice session scheduled for the race weekend in Miami, the second with a Sprint format of the season, with an exceptional duration of 90 minutes instead of the traditional 60 expected for FP1. Half an hour of extra time on the track granted by the FIA to ensure that all teams can test the changes to the regulations made during the long stop in April and, at the same time, to better evaluate the many updates brought by the teams in the fourth round of the championship, so as to arrive at the afternoon sprint qualifying in optimal condition. Updates brought massively by Ferrari, which arrived on the track in Miami for FP1 with a car revised in eleven elements: an almost opposite condition compared to that of Mercedes, which presented itself in America with slight developments to the single-seater, but will introduce the real updates only in Canada.
leclerc-kimi duel
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Despite these polar opposite conditions, it was the two teams that dominated the long free practice session, which began with all the cars on the track on hard tyres. Kimi Antonelli, currently leader of the World Championship, took the lead of the standings after half an hour, holding it for a long time and keeping a great variety of opponents behind him: with 60 minutes left in the session there were in fact four teams in the top positions, with Leclerc, Norris and Verstappen chasing the Italian. The Aston Martins, in great difficulty in the first rounds already archived this year, started the session with problems, with the cars stopped in the garage for almost half an hour due to a “power supply problem in the garage”. At the top of the standings the positions changed 46 minutes from the end of free practice, when Charles Leclerc, again on hard tyre, managed to take the lead with two tenths of an advantage over Kimi Antonelli, followed by the other Ferrari, that of the British driver Lewis Hamilton.
Russell struggles
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George Russell was in more difficulty throughout the session, always far from the performance of his teammate Antonelli and stopping in the pits several times to change the car’s set-up. Opposite situation for Kimi, who made very few set-up changes during the session, already appearing at ease from the start of FP1 with his Mercedes, which was then slowed down by a technical problem with the power unit in the final part. The top of the standings changed in the final ten minutes, when the drivers returned to the pits to fit the more high-performance red tire and attempt the qualifying lap. Russell, on soft tyres, was unable to overtake Antonelli – who had set the fastest time on hard tires – and stopped at the checkered flag with the sixth fastest time. In front of the Italian, fifth, were Lewis Hamilton’s Ferrari, Oscar Piastri’s McLaren, Max Verstappen’s Red Bull and, with the best time, Charles Leclerc’s red car.
Kimi braked
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Among these top six, only Antonelli did not set the time on the soft tyre, forced to get out of the car early due to a technical problem with the power unit that the team was unable to resolve before the end of the session. However, the Italian managed to complete almost all 90 minutes of free practice, also working on his race pace. That of his Mercedes was, as in previous weekends, the best of the cars in action, but Leclerc’s Ferrari also appeared close in this sense, demonstrating how much the Maranello team worked on the car during the April break.
the times
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Free practice times for the Miami GP:
1. Leclerc (Ferrari) 1’29″310
2. Verstappen (Red Bull) 1’29″607
3. Plates (McLaren) 1’29″758
4. Hamilton (Ferrari) 1’29″777
5. Antonelli (Mercedes) 1’30″079
6. Russell (Mercedes) 1’30″100
7. Norris (McLaren) 1’30″208
8. Gasly (Alpine) 1’30″587
9. Hadjar (Red Bull) 1’30″873
10. Sainz (Williams) 1’30″930
11. Colapinto (Alpine) 1’31″015
12. Albon (Williams) 1’31″024
13. Bearman (Haas) 1’31″091
14. Bortoleto (Audi) 1’31″111
15. Hülkenberg (Audi) 1’31″595
16. Ocon (Haas) 1’31″635
17. Lawson (Racing Bulls) 1’31″648
18. Perez (Cadillac) 1’32″047
19. Alonso (Aston Martin) 1’32″593
20. Bottas (Cadillac) 1’32″762
21. Lindblad (Racing Bulls) 1’32″862
22. Stroll (Aston Martin) 1’32″959
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