UNITED STATES: Mercedes made a strong start in the first practice session of the Miami Grand Prix, with George Russell and Lewis Hamilton taking the top two spots on the time sheets. However, the session was not without incident, as Haas driver Nico Hulkenberg crashed into the wall at Turn 3 early on, causing a red flag.
Max Verstappen looked to have the session under control for much of the hour-long practice, but Mercedes showed their true pace in the final stages of the session, with Russell and Hamilton setting blistering times on soft tyres. The session began in scorching conditions, with track temperatures reaching 48 Celsius.
Kevin Magnussen was the first to set a time on the medium tyres, while George Russell suffered from a vibrating steering wheel and had to spend half the session in the pits getting it fixed. Verstappen initially went fastest on the hard tyres, with Sergio Perez struggling to match his teammate’s pace.
Nyck de Vries had a tough start, spinning at Turn 12/13, and the stewards noted him for potentially dangerous driving. However, they took no further action against him.
Verstappen continued to improve his time, despite the dusty track conditions and eventually set a time of 1:31.8 on the soft tyres.
However, Charles Leclerc in the Ferrari managed to narrow the gap to just 0.25 seconds, putting Ferrari back in the game.
But it was Mercedes who had the final say, as Russell and Hamilton went on a flying lap on soft tyres to take the top two spots on the time sheets, with Russell setting a time of 1:30.125, two-tenths clear of Hamilton.
Despite Hulkenberg’s crash early on, Haas did manage to put in a strong performance, with Hulkenberg and teammate Kevin Magnussen both setting times in the top 10.
However, whether they can maintain this form over the rest of the race weekend remains to be seen.
Overall, the opening practice session in Miami showed that Mercedes might have the pace to compete with Red Bull and Ferrari and that George Russell continues to impress in his second season with the team.
With the track temperatures set to remain high for the rest of the weekend, it promises to be an exciting race in Miami.
Also Read: Max Verstappen Wins Inaugural Miami Grand Prix 2022
