FERNANDO ALONSO KICKS OFF SINGAPORE WEEKEND FASTEST
Formula 1 has arrived to Singapore for the hottest round of the season, where drivers have already been warned about temperatures, and will be forced to use cooling kits in order to avoid health issues during the sessions.
The FIA raised the pit lane speed limit from 60 to 80 km/h in Singapore, as they did at Zandvoort, to make the two-stop strategy more attractive, as it is estimated that the time lost by a single stop could be reduced by around 5 seconds. This could have a decisive impact, especially in case of a Safety Car or Virtual Safety Car.
Heat and humidity put the drivers, cars, and tires to the test. Pirelli has confirmed the C3, C4, and C5 as its choices for the GP, excluding the C6 due to the risk of overheating, given that degradation at Marina Bay is primarily due to overheating tires.
Free Practice 1
Fernando Alonso set the surprise pace in Friday’s first practice for the Singapore Grand Prix, putting his Aston Martin ahead of Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc and Red Bull’s Max Verstappen. Alonso’s best time was a 1m 31.116s.
All 20 drivers hit the track quickly when the session began, most on hard tyres, while Aston Martin chose mediums. Conditions were still a little damp in places. Early on, Alex Albon had an issue when smoke came from the back of his Williams, forcing the team to bring out fire extinguishers. Williams later confirmed a rear brake problem, ending his session early.
On track, Lando Norris briefly led with a 1m 33.388s despite a small mistake, while Leclerc also had a lock-up at Turn 13. Alonso soon moved ahead with a 1m 32.592s before lowering his time again. Carlos Sainz later grabbed top spot with a 1m 31.812s, showing pace close to last year’s FP1 benchmark.
Once drivers switched to soft tyres, lap times tumbled. Leclerc went fastest with a 1m 31.266s ahead of Verstappen and Norris. Rookie Isack Hadjar also impressed by going fourth for Racing Bulls.
In the final minutes, Alonso returned to the top with his 1m 31.116s lap, keeping Leclerc and Verstappen behind him. Lewis Hamilton slotted into fourth, while Oscar Piastri recovered from a tricky start to finish fifth, just ahead of Norris. Hadjar ended up seventh, followed by Sainz, Yuki Tsunoda, and Esteban Ocon in the top 10.
Mercedes had a quieter session with George Russell in 11th and young teammate Kimi Antonelli 14th. Between them were Nico Hulkenberg and Pierre Gasly. The rest of the order saw Liam Lawson, Ollie Bearman, Gabriel Bortoleto, Lance Stroll, Franco Colapinto, and the sidelined Albon at the back.
Teams will now study the data before heading into the more representative FP2 session at 21:00 local time under the Singapore lights.
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