Ferrari ahead in the only free practice session in Brazil
Ferrari set the pace in the only free practice session at the Grand Prix weekend in Brazil.
On the fastest soft tires, Spaniard Carlos Sainz set the fastest time at the Autódromo José Carlos Pace ahead of his Monegasque stable rival Charles Leclerc. Third place went to George Russell on the medium tire compound in the Mercedes.
The 25-year-old Briton had won both the Sprint and the São Paulo Grand Prix a year ago in the Mercedes on the legendary circuit in Interlagos. On the slightly slower tires in practice before qualifying this Friday (19:00 CET/Sky), he was only 0.133 seconds behind Sainz.
Hülkenberg in fourth place, Verstappen only 16th.
Nico Hülkenberg finished fourth in the Haas. However, he had to park his car in the pits early. The 36-year-old driver from Emmerich, who had sensationally secured pole position in a wet qualifying session in the Williams in 2010, also had a minor collision with Lando Norris' McLaren, which was to be investigated by the race stewards.
World champion Max Verstappen took it easy in the Red Bull and finished his fastest lap on the hard tires in 16th place. Team-mate Sergio Pérez was 18th, while record world champion Lewis Hamilton finished twelfth in the second Mercedes.
For the last time this year, a sprint race will also be held on the Grand Prix weekend. The starting grid for this will be determined around four hours beforehand on Saturday. Qualifying for the Grand Prix is therefore already scheduled for Friday.
Source: www.dpa.com
