SINGAPORE: Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc was quickest in first practice for the Singapore Grand Prix on Friday, less than a tenth of a second ahead of Lando Norris in a McLaren.
Carlos Sainz, who won for Ferrari in Singapore a year ago, was third fastest with championship leader Max Verstappen fourth.
Leclerc lapped the Marina Bay Circuit in 1min 31.763sec on the hard compound tire with Norris 0.076sec behind on mediums.
It was a tentative opening daylight session, unrepresentative of Saturday’s qualifying and Sunday’s race which will be run in different conditions under lights.
Sainz clocked 1:31.952 with Verstappen’s Red Bull going around the 4.94km layout in 1:32.097.
Englishman Norris is hunting down the Dutchman Verstappen at the top of the drivers’ standings.
The triple world champion’s lead is 59 points with seven grands prix and three sprints to go, leaving a maximum of 207 points up for grabs.
Singapore was the only race Red Bull failed to win last year.
They returned 12 months later having lost their lead at the top of the constructors’ standings at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix last weekend. McLaren are 20 points ahead after Oscar Piastri won in Baku.
The Australian may have crossed the line first there, but he was last out of the pits in Singapore and could only record the sixth fastest time, on soft tires.
Piastri emerged more than 10 minutes after the rest of the cars because of a problem with his left rear wheel nut becoming stuck during pit-stop practice earlier in the day.
RB’s Yuki Tsunoda and Daniel Ricciardo showed promising early pace, lapping fifth and seventh fastest respectively.
Alex Albon’s Williams was eighth with Fernando Alonso in an Aston Martin and Esteban Ocon’s Alpine rounding out the top 10.
Verstappen won seven of the first 10 races this season but he has not triumphed in the last seven as McLaren, Ferrari and Mercedes have all taken race wins.
History suggests that Verstappen’s fortunes are unlikely to improve around the unpredictable city center track in Singapore this weekend.
Verstappen failed to make the top 10 in qualifying 12 months ago, eventually finishing fifth, and he has never won on the tight city-center circuit.
Red Bull traditionally struggle in Singapore where tropical storms, intense humidity, concrete barriers, safety cars and red flags are ever-present dangers.
Sergio Perez did win in Singapore in 2022, but that was Red Bull’s only victory here since Sebastian Vettel in 2013.
Mercedes usually fare well in Singapore, even during their recent lean years, but both Lewis Hamilton and George Russell could not get the balance right in the first session and trailed in 12th and 16th respectively.
Ferrari’s Leclerc sets early pace in Singapore ahead of Norris
https://arab.news/4z7nb
Ferrari’s Leclerc sets early pace in Singapore ahead of Norris
- Leclerc lapped the Marina Bay Circuit in 1min 31.763sec on the hard compound tire with Norris 0.076sec behind on mediums
Late winner seals victory for Al-Ettifaq on SPL return
- After month-long hiatus, the Saudi Pro League returned to action on Matchday 11 with Al-Ettifaq and NEOM both securing victories
RIYADH: Thursday marked the long-awaited return of the Saudi Pro League after a 23-day break due to the national team’s participation at the 2025 Arab Cup.
What appeared to be a night short on goals — following a goalless draw between Al-Fayha and Al-Hazem earlier in the day — dramatically shifted after four goals were scored after the 89th minute across the fixtures.
Al-Ettifaq — city rivals of Brendan Rodgers’ new side, Al-Qadsiah — faced Al-Riyadh, looking to strengthen their position in the upper mid-table, and ultimately emerged from the capital with a 2-0 win.
However, the contest proved far from straightforward against the relegation battlers, with Moussa Dembele unable to rediscover his scoring touch despite netting a brace in his last outing.
Al-Ettifaq, enjoying the majority of possession, struggled to find their way past Al-Riyadh goalkeeper Milan Borjan, who produced six saves to keep his side in the contest. Al-Riyadh were pushed deep for much of the second half, largely due to being reduced to 10 men following Mohammed Al-Khaibari’s dismissal after a professional foul.
The visitors’ persistence finally paid off in injury time, as goals from Francisco Calvo and Georginio Wijnaldum secured a dramatic victory to give Al-Ettifaq the valuable three points, lifting them to seventh place on 15 points, after 10 matches.
Sitting just ahead of them in sixth are NEOM, who remain two points clear after surviving a late scare against Al-Najma to claim a 2-1 home victory.
In the battle between two newly-promoted teams — one in the top 6, and the other at the rear end of the table — NEOM appeared to be cruising after centre-back Nathan Zeze scored his first goal for the club in the 54th minute, before Khalifah Al-Dawsari doubled the lead in the 89th minute.
The match took an intense turn when Al-Najma were awarded a penalty in the fifth minute of stoppage time, converted by Bilal Boutobba.
As Saudi National Team ex-captain Salman Al-Faraj made his return to the pitch for the first time in 400 days, Al-Najma managed to push forward once more and grab a late goal, believing they had claimed a dramatic equalizer — only for Faisal Al-Mutairi’s effort to be ruled out for offside. The result condemned Al-Najma to their ninth defeat of the season.
Action continues on Friday with three more fixtures: Al-Fateh host Al-Ahli in the Eastern Province at 4:05pm KSA, Al-Kholood face Al-Taawoun at 6:00pm, and Al Hilal welcome Al-Khaleej in Riyadh at 8:30pm.
