Lando Norris headed George Russell in Barcelona practice on Friday, with the pair separated by just 0.009 seconds at the end of a day that left the form picture for the Barcelona-Catalunya Grand Prix far from settled.
Norris, in the McLaren, set the fastest time in the second session, with Russell’s Mercedes directly behind. Oscar Piastri, in the second McLaren, was only 0.057 seconds further back, leaving the two teams closely matched ahead of qualifying.
Leclerc Third as Antonelli’s Lap Time Misleads
Charles Leclerc was third fastest for Ferrari, 0.373 seconds adrift of Norris. Championship leader Kimi Antonelli was fourth, but his lap time is not a reliable guide to Mercedes’ true pace: Antonelli encountered traffic during his qualifying simulation run and the time is unrepresentative.
Later in the session Antonelli appeared quick on race-simulation runs, though a direct comparison with Russell was not possible as the two were running different tyre compounds. The true gap between the two Mercedes drivers, and between Mercedes and McLaren over a race distance, therefore remains unclear heading into Saturday.
Antonelli leads the drivers’ championship and is well clear of his nearest rivals. Russell sits 68 points behind and, by his own need for a strong result, came into Barcelona requiring a good weekend. Topping the first session was a positive early sign, though the picture across both sessions was complicated by the differing programmes teams ran.
Barcelona Practice Results Leave Hamilton Questions Unanswered
Lewis Hamilton had a difficult Friday. He sat out the first session entirely, with Ferrari junior driver Dino Beganovic taking his place for a run. When Hamilton returned for the second session, he could manage only ninth fastest, leaving him well off the pace of the frontrunners.
Hamilton is second in the championship, 66 points behind Antonelli after the first six races. A recovery will be needed if he is to stay in contention over the remainder of the season.
Max Verstappen was sixth in the second session but 0.895 seconds off the pace set by Norris, a considerable margin at this stage of the weekend. Arvid Lindblad of Racing Bulls was seventh, with Gabriel Bortoleto of Audi eighth.
Russell had topped the first session from Piastri, while Antonelli sat out that hour to allow reserve driver Frederik Vesti a run. With several drivers running non-standard programmes across the two sessions, and tyre strategies varying, the Friday times offer only a partial picture of where teams genuinely stand.
Qualifying on Saturday will give the first clear indication of who holds the pace advantage at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya.
