Alonso Leads First Session at Singapore Grand Prix

F1 Singapore

This weekend features the main event starting at British Summer Time on Sunday.

Real-time coverage streamed on digital platforms and mobile app.

Opening Round Overview

Aston Martin's Fernando Alonso was fastest beating Monegasque driver and Dutch ace during the opening session for the street circuit event.

McLaren's championship contenders Oscar Piastri and British talent concluded the run in mid-table positions.

Piastri was 0.217 seconds quicker than Norris.

Alonso was 0.150secs leading of Leclerc and a clear gap quicker than Verstappen.

Ferrari's seven-time champion was fourth fastest.

Weekend Outlook

It is not expected that the Silverstone-based team will be contenders for pole position.

That said, the team are optimistic of a strong showing on a tight circuit that is better matched to their vehicle, which excels when significant amounts of downforce are required.

Double world title winner Alonso is also renowned as a Marina Bay expert, and often shines on the Singapore circuit.

However he was almost certainly operating with reduced weight or a higher engine mode than his rivals, or each, to set such a quick time.

Practice Conditions

Fellow driver Canadian racer was almost two seconds behind in the lower order.

The Canadian had issues with his driving position at the start and was also testing experimental parts.

FP1 in Singapore is not indicative of later performance under lights as it is held in afternoon sun in late afternoon, while qualifying and the main event are held under floodlights.

Points Situation

Piastri leads Norris by a quarter-century with seven races left as they approach the Grand Prix in Singapore.

McLaren are set to clinch the constructors' championship on Sunday.

Sole scenario they can fail to secure it in Singapore is if the Silver Arrows outscore them by 31 points or Ferrari achieve that by 35.

Rival Teams

Red Bull are hopeful of a positive weekend after Max's wins in Italy and Azerbaijan preceding this event.

They were relieved when drizzle coming down prior to running stopped by the time the vehicles took to the track on a track that had remained dry.

Team consultant Helmut Marko stated before the session that they required a clear session to get underway on fine-tuning their chassis settings for the weekend.