Charles Leclerc completed a Friday practice double at the United States Grand Prix, although Ferrari did not have things entirely its own way at the Circuit of The Americas.
The upgraded SF-26 topped both sessions, while Kimi Antonelli made a sizeable improvement with Mercedes and Max Verstappen remained close throughout. McLaren ended the day seventh and eighth after a more difficult FP2.
Ferrari’s Austin upgrade makes an immediate impression
Leclerc led FP1 with a 1:36.052 before lowering the benchmark to 1:35.291 in FP2, beating Antonelli by just 0.042 seconds. It was an encouraging first day for Ferrari’s major Austin upgrade, which includes changes to the floor and bodywork. Leclerc said the new parts had worked as expected but cautioned that Ferrari’s rivals still had performance to find.
There was evidence of that already. Verstappen actually produced a 1:35.862 in FP1, almost two tenths quicker than Leclerc’s eventual benchmark, but lost the lap for exceeding track limits at Turn 19. Lewis Hamilton finished sixth in FP1 and improved to fourth later in the day, although he remained 0.615s behind his team-mate. The seven-time champion said he had struggled with the set-up direction tried on his car, particularly over COTA’s bumps.
Antonelli responds after difficult start
Mercedes was less comfortable in the opening session. George Russell complained about his brakes while Antonelli struggled with the balance of the W17 on his way to fifth. Changes between sessions made an immediate difference. Antonelli climbed to second in FP2 and finished only 0.042s behind Leclerc, while Russell took fifth despite losing one lap to track limits and having a sizeable moment on another qualifying attempt.
Antonelli said Mercedes had taken a “good step forward” but still needed more to be confident of fighting for victory. Trackside engineering director Andrew Shovlin believes the margins are small enough for any of the leading four teams to challenge for pole. The timing could hardly be better for Antonelli, who has his first opportunity to win the 2026 F1 world championship in Austin.
Verstappen remains firmly in the fight
Red Bull’s recent improvement appears to have carried into Texas. Verstappen finished second in FP1 and third in FP2 after winning the previous two Grands Prix in Malaysia and Singapore. The RB22 was not entirely comfortable over COTA’s bumps, with technical director Pierre Waché saying the team still needed to improve compliance while balancing qualifying performance against tyre degradation. Verstappen nevertheless described it as a positive start to the weekend.
His deleted FP1 lap also makes Ferrari’s Friday clean sweep look slightly less decisive. Verstappen was within 0.189s of Leclerc in FP2 and remains firmly among the contenders heading into Saturday.
McLaren have work to do
McLaren had the least convincing Friday of the four leading teams. Lando Norris was third in FP1 but dropped to seventh in FP2, one place ahead of Oscar Piastri. Norris suffered a snap of oversteer and ran off during his qualifying simulation, while both drivers reported problems with the handling of the MCL40. They finished just over a second behind Leclerc, although Friday practice times alone rarely provide a complete picture of race pace.
For the championship picture, session times and COTA background, our United States GP race-week guide has everything you need ahead of qualifying.
Keep up with the United States Grand Prix
Follow the latest Formula 1 news, qualifying results and analysis on Read Motorsport throughout the Austin weekend.
Comments.
Loading comments…