By Peter Habicht
George Russell topped the timesheets in the final minutes of free practice 1 for Mercedes at the Miami International Circuit with a quickest time of 1m30.125s, and teammate Lewis Hamilton next fastest with a 1m30.337s lap.
Max Verstappen led most of the hour long session with top times on hard, medium and soft compound tires, as the Ferraris of Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz trading places with the Aston Martin of Fernando Alonso and the Haas of Nico Hulkenberg close behind.
The Miami circuit has been completely resurfaced in preparation for this year’s race, and teams exercised caution around the dusty circuit as the racing line evolved.
New to the Miami Circuit this year, Hulkenberg led the timesheet briefly with a 1m31.392s lap with about 27 minutes left in the session, when he exited turn three wide, nosing his car into the barrier and bringing out the safety car for several minutes. Verstappen had just answered with a 1:31.054s before Hulkenberg’s impact.
Russell and Hamilton held off running on soft tires until the closing minutes, turning their fastest laps with just seconds left in the session. Charles Leclerc was third quickest with a 1m30.449s lap.
