Spanish GP FP1 handed Mercedes a 1-2 in the first Formula 1 session ever run at the Madring, George Russell lapping the new Madrid circuit in 1m34.077s to finish 0.286s clear of team-mate Kimi Antonelli.
Ferrari lead early running before Spanish GP FP1 turns Mercedes’ way
Ferrari had set the benchmark for much of the hour. Lewis Hamilton was into the 1m36s bracket within eight minutes and pushed the reference down to 1m34.620s on medium rubber, with Charles Leclerc briefly quicker still. Antonelli’s and Russell’s first runs on the soft tyre both fell short of that mark; only on his third attempt did Russell go clear, then improve again.
Leclerc took third, 0.459s adrift, from Hamilton, who along with the sidelined Yuki Tsunoda was the only driver not to set his best lap on softs. Max Verstappen was fifth ahead of Lando Norris, rookie Arvid Lindblad and Oscar Piastri. Tsunoda’s session ended 25 minutes early with a power steering problem on the Racing Bulls, while home favourite Fernando Alonso was a respectable 15th. Cadillac were fined twice after Sergio Perez twice exceeded the pit lane limit.
Russell: Madring has “less margin than Monaco”
Both Ferraris ran wide at Turn 17 in a session that stayed green throughout, and Russell — 66 points behind Antonelli in the standings — had already warned that the semi-street layout punishes error more harshly than the sport’s most famous barrier-lined venue.
“In Monaco, the walls are closer, but because you’re going far slower, if you make a mistake, you’re not into the wall as quickly,” he said. “If you are to go wide and hit the wall, you’re not hitting it kind of at the same angle as the car is going. The wall is sort of coming in at you.”
That reading matches the pre-event consensus that the Madring poses a genuine title threat. Full session detail via Motorsport.com’s FP1 report.
