Charles Leclerc Leads Ferrari in First Singapore GP Practice Session

The first practice session ahead of the Singapore Grand Prix saw Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc setting the pace, narrowly edging out McLaren’s Lando Norris by just 0.076 seconds. The session, which took place at 1730 local time, included a tight battle for top times among the leading Formula 1 teams.

Daniel Ricciardo was the first driver on the track as the session commenced amid ongoing speculation about his future in the sport. However, issues struck McLaren’s Oscar Piastri early on when his car experienced a problem with the rear-left tyre. McLaren stated this was an unprecedented issue and assured it would be thoroughly investigated to prevent recurrence over the weekend.

The initial laps saw Norris establish the early benchmark on medium compound tyres with a time of 1m33.903s, positioning himself half a second ahead of championship contender Max Verstappen. Meanwhile, Piastri joined the session after ten minutes of pit work, while Ricciardo faced delays due to difficulties removing an aero rake from his vehicle.

The session’s midpoint marked Leclerc’s ascent to the top of the timesheets, with significant weather-induced slippery conditions on the track leading to various incidents, including a yellow flag caused by Sergio Perez. Leclerc’s Ferrari teammate, Carlos Sainz, who was victorious in Singapore last year, managed to secure the third position behind Norris.

Further down the grid, there were notable performances from Williams and Aston Martin drivers. Fernando Alonso executed an impressive save after a near-spin, and Esteban Ocon rounded out the top 10 for Alpine. Notably, Lewis Hamilton concluded in 12th position while Russell suffered a setback following his podium finish in Baku, ending in 16th place.

As the session drew to a close, Leclerc’s fastest lap of 1m31.763s held the top spot, with Norris and Sainz close behind. Teams and drivers prepared for the upcoming second practice session, looking for strategic insights as they adjusted their cars for the evolving track conditions under nighttime settings.

The unpredictable conditions and competitive timings from the first practice set the stage for an exciting remainder of the Singapore Grand Prix weekend.