Lewis Hamilton already claimed the track record of Interlagos (Brazil) with the fastest time in FP1 ahead of Valtteri Bottas and Kimi Räikkönen.
George Russell made his debuts in FP1 with Force India, taking over Sergio Perez’ run. Charles Leclerc also ran with Pascal Wehrlein’s Sauber. The sun offered nice conditions to the drivers before the rain is expected for the rest of the week-end.
After a catastrophic week-end in Mexico, the nightmare continued for Toro Rosso with Brendon Hartley’s engine failing. A few laps later, Pierre Gasly was forced to step down after only one flying lap completed as his MGUK failed.
A few drivers committed little mistakes but the session went smoothly overall. Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes) was the fastest in the session as he beat the track record twice. He led from his teammate Valtteri Bottas and Kimi Räikkönen (Ferrari).
Behind the two Finns were both Red Bull of Max Verstappen and Daniel Ricciardo. Sebastian Vettel was further back in 6th position after a spin. He led from Felipe Massa (Williams), Stoffel Vandoorne (McLaren) despite engines complains, Esteban Ocon (Force India) and Fernando Alonso (McLaren) completed the top 10.
