It was Charles Leclerc who set the pace on Friday at the Austin race weekend. Both practice sessions held today at the Circuit of the Americas in Texas ended with the Ferrari driver at the top of the timesheets.
In FP2, Leclerc posted the fastest time of 1:35.291 on the Soft C4 compound. He was followed by Kimi Antonelli, who clocked a 1:35.333, while four-time World Champion Max Verstappen was third with a 1:35.480. All three drivers set their best times on the Soft tyre.
The Ferrari driver started the second hour of running on the Hard C2, while Antonelli and Verstappen initially opted for the Medium C3. During the second half of the session, the three drivers carried out race simulations following different programmes. Leclerc and Verstappen completed their long runs on used sets of Soft tyres, while the Italian driver ran on a used set of Mediums.
Across the day, all three compounds were used extensively. In FP1, thirteen drivers completed at least one stint on the Hard, all twenty ran on the Soft, and nine used the Medium. As was also the case in FP2, the quickest laps came during the opening phase of the session before the focus shifted to race pace evaluation and long runs.
Earlier in the day, Leclerc had already topped FP1 with a time of 1:36.052. Verstappen and Lando Norris followed in second and third respectively. Track temperatures reached 43°C this afternoon, while ambient temperatures were around 32°C.
Charles Leclerc – Fastest in FP1 and FP2
“The feeling in the car was quite good. Our upgrades worked as expected, but we must not get carried away by too high expectations ahead of tomorrow, as I believe our competitors have more potential to unlock. Kimi (Antonelli) and Max (Verstappen) already look very strong, and they’ll definitely be up there in qualifying. We’ll keep our heads down and see what tomorrow has in store.”
Dario Marrafuschi – Pirelli Motorsport Director
“The indications from the first two sessions confirm very consistent behaviour from the three compounds selected for this Grand Prix. So far, the C2 appears likely to play only a limited role in defining race strategies, while teams are focusing primarily on the Medium and Soft compounds. Given the level of degradation observed and the rapid evolution of track grip, a one-stop race currently appears to be the most likely scenario.
Track evolution is progressing as expected. The surface was particularly dirty at the start of running, but it rubbered in quickly, allowing grip levels to reach a very good standard. The performance gaps between the compounds are also in line with expectations, at around nine tenths of a second between the Medium and Hard, and five tenths between the Medium and Soft. Particular attention will also be paid to the aerodynamic balance of the cars, an aspect made even more significant by the bumps and irregularities of the track surface. An imbalance can increase the tendency for front-wheel locking under the heaviest braking zones, making it crucial to find the best possible compromise in terms of car set-up.”
