Suzuka, Oct 7 (BUS): Britain’s George Russell edged faster over his Mercedes teammate Lewis Hamilton at a flooded Suzuka on the opening day of practice for the Japanese Grand Prix.
The 24-year-old clocked 5.8 kilometers in one minute 41.935 seconds in the second round, beating Hamilton’s best time of 0.235 seconds on a cold, rainy afternoon.
Reuters said Red Bull leader Max Verstappen finished the session in third place with the fastest time.
Russell and Hamilton finished opening practice Friday 18 and 13 on the schedule in a session led by Fernando Alonso in the Alps.
“This actor probably won’t be for the weekend but definitely good learning for the future,” Russell said after the session.
“Not a bad age,” he added.
Hamilton described the first day of practice as ‘boring’, ‘gray’ and ‘wet’.
“Hopefully we’ll be quick, but that’s a hope that lasts the way it is every week,” he said.
Verstappen was sixth fastest in the first session.
The Dutchman heads into the weekend with a 104-point lead over Charles Leclerc in the overall standings.
With four races left after Suzuka, the 25-year-old will be the champion for the second year in a row if he leaves Japan by at least 112 points.
“I wish it was a little more representative,” he said.
“In terms of knowing where you are at a brisk pace in wet weather, it’s always a bit tricky.”
Mexican Sergio Perez, winner of last week’s Red Bull title in Singapore, finished the second session in fourth place, with Kevin Magnussen remaining fifth with Haas.
Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz, second fastest behind compatriot Alonso in first practice, was sixth fastest in the afternoon ahead of the two-time world champion.
Valtteri Bottas finished eighth among Alfa Romeo’s fastest player, ahead of Esteban Ocon’s Chinese, Zhou Guanyu, while Ferrari’s Leclerc finished only eleventh in the second session.
Home hopes Yuki Tsunoda, nineteen in the morning, improved to fourteen in the afternoon.
Mick Schumacher did not participate in the Haas crash after the opening session, having performed start practice.
The German will switch to a spare structure for the rest of the weekend.
“Obviously you’re trying to figure out the same path and it’s my first time here, so I’m trying to figure out where the puddles are because that’s a completely different thing everywhere you go,” he said.
“Here it seems that the water is accumulating quite a bit in certain areas and it takes to understand that.”
Friday’s run at Suzuka was the first Formula 1 event on the track since 2019, with the venue missing from the calendar for the past two years due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Schumacher’s accident was the only major accident of the day, but the drivers still struggled to control the treacherous conditions with Leclerc, Perez and Nicolas Latifi, among those who skidded off the track.
The second session lasted 90 minutes instead of the usual hour to allow drivers to test the new dry weather tyres. Rain meant the test had to be abandoned but the session lasted a full 90 minutes.
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