Practice 1 Report - Norris leads Japan FP1, Tsunoda shines for Red Bull

George Russell
© Mercedes

McLaren's Lando Norris set the pace in the opening practice session for the Japanese Grand Prix, clocking a 1:28.549 on soft tyres to top the timesheets at Suzuka. Despite a scrappy start—including a near-spin and a brief off-track moment—Norris delivered a composed final effort to go fastest.

George Russell held the provisional fastest time through much of the session and ultimately finished second, just 0.163s adrift after solid runs on both medium and soft compounds.

Charles Leclerc slotted into third, despite reporting issues with deceleration, while Lewis Hamilton took fourth, narrowly ahead of Max Verstappen by only 0.014s. Verstappen, who complained of car flexing in sector two, was unable to mount a full challenge.

All eyes were on Yuki Tsunoda, who made his first official appearance for Red Bull following his promotion from the Racing Bulls team. The Japanese driver impressed by finishing just 0.107s behind Verstappen, ending the session in sixth. Speaking on the radio, Tsunoda described the RB21 as "interesting" and praised the productive start.

Fernando Alonso placed seventh, with Isack Hadjar a surprise entry into the top eight. Andrea Kimi Antonelli and Carlos Sainz completed the top 10, though both drivers encountered issues—Antonelli had a moment at the hairpin, while Sainz expressed discomfort with his Williams' sharper front end following a setup tweak.

Alex Albon narrowly missed the top 10, finishing 11th, while Alpine reserve Ryo Hirakawa was an impressive 12th in his first outing in the A525, beating regular teammate Pierre Gasly by 0.15s.

Liam Lawson returned to Racing Bulls and split the Alpines in 13th. Oscar Piastri struggled to hook up a clean lap in his McLaren and could only manage 15th, ending a tricky start to the weekend for the Australian.

The session set the tone for an intriguing weekend in Suzuka, with unpredictable performances and local hero Tsunoda making headlines early.