George Russell pips Kimi Antonelli in Japanese GP FP1

Mercedes’ George Russell topped the opening hour of practice ahead of his teammate, and race winner, Kimi Antonelli, at the Japanese Grand Prix. 

Feature image credit: Pirelli

The Silver Arrows have maintained their recent run of form after the first session of the Japanese GP, with Russell going top of the timing boards with a 1m 31.666s, 0.026s faster than Antonelli. 

It was a usual mix of the harder compounds in the opening stints, with many drivers opting for the hard compounds, whilst others preferred the yellow-walled mediums. All before the usual soft-tyre runs conducted in the second half of the session.

But there was a driver change for the opening practice hour as Jak Crawford replaced Fernando Alonso at Aston Martin, as the team’s first FP1 rookie.

Embed from Getty Images

Russell, on his first run out of the garages, immediately topped the timing boards. The Briton set the benchmark pace with a 1m 33.312s, 0.7 seconds to the early benchmark pace of McLaren’s Piastri. 

The Mercedes and McLaren found themselves chopping and changing at the top of the board before Russell cemented his position, ahead of Antonelli and McLaren’s world champion, Lando Norris, respectively.

However, as the session wore on, drivers were experiencing track limits, namely Alexander Albon of Williams. 

The Thai driver ran wide at the second Degner corner, skipping over the gravel before he tapped the barrier. Albon was able to continue on back to the pits for an inspection before returning to the circuit. 

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Later on, the Williams driver collided with the Cadillac’s Sergio Perez at turn 16. The Mexican driver was not aware of Albon being down the inside of him at the penultimate corner, and the two collided, shredding debris at the corner. 

Both drivers returned to the pits and remained there for the rest of the session. 

Others were facing less trouble, struggling to stay within the lines at Spoon Curve, turn 13 to 14, with the reigning world champion, McLaren’s Lando Norris, running wide on one of his first timed runs. 

So, who finished where in FP1?

1. George Russell, Mercedes – 1m 31.666s
2. Kimi Antonelli, Mercedes +0.026s
3. Lando Norris, McLaren +0.132s
4. Oscar Piastri, McLaren +0.199s
5. Charles Leclerc, Ferrari +0.289s
6. Lewis Hamilton, Ferrari +0.374s
7. Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing +0.791s
8. Liam Lawson, Racing Bulls +0.863s
9. Esteban Ocon, Haas +0.935s
10. Arvid Lindblad, Racing Bulls +0.999s
11. Gabriel Bortoleto, Audi +1.093s
12. Nico Hulkenberg, Audi +1.132s
13. Isack Hadjar, Red Bull Racing +1.137s
14. Oliver Bearman, Haas +1.234s
15. Pierre Gasly, Alpine +1.312s
16. Franco Colapinto, Alpine +1.695s
17. Carlos Sainz, Williams +1.717s
18. Alexander Albon, Williams +2.031s
19. Sergio Perez, Cadillac +2.555s
20. Valtteri Bottas, Cadillac +2.824s
21. Lance Stroll, Aston Martin +3.628s
22. Jak Crawford, Aston Martin +4.696s

Read more Formula 1 here:

• Japan Grand Prix Preview: Mercedes look to extend dominance in Suzuka
• Mercedes reveals new ‘livery’ for Japanese GP
• Progress at Aston Martin despite a difficult start F1 season
• Haas F1 reveal special Japanese Grand Prix livery
• Jak Crawford to drive Aston Martin in Japanese GP FP1
• Racing Bulls to Support Wings for Life World Run in Global Initiative

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Kamron Kent

Hi, I’m Kamron. I created ApexMotorsports.co.uk in the dying embers of the 2021 Formula 1 world championship. It allowed me freedom to write whatever I wanted to write about which was all things motorsports, my passion.

I have put a lot of effort in over the years to keep this website in its best shape and I’ve loved seeing the brand grow consistently, month-on-month, year-on-year. My ambition is to keep watching this brand grow into a primary outlet of news for all things motorsports whilst fueling my desire to pursue a career in sports journalism, specialising in motorsports.

Kamron Kent

Hi, I'm Kamron. I created ApexMotorsports.co.uk in the dying embers of the 2021 Formula 1 world championship. It allowed me freedom to write whatever I wanted to write about which was all things motorsports, my passion. I have put a lot of effort in over the years to keep this website in its best shape and I've loved seeing the brand grow consistently, month-on-month, year-on-year. My ambition is to keep watching this brand grow into a primary outlet of news for all things motorsports whilst fueling my desire to pursue a career in sports journalism, specialising in motorsports.