Lewis Hamilton leads Ferrari practice sweep ahead of US Grand Prix qualifying

UPDATE - follow-up to United States Grand Prix: Formula One qualifying – live: Lewis Hamilton completed a practice sweep for Ferrari in Austin ahead of Saturday's qualifying session, clocking a lap of 1min 34.893sec in 30C heat at the Circuit of the Americas.

Practice Standings

Hamilton finished 0.168 seconds quicker than Red Bull's Max Verstappen and 0.234 seconds faster than teammate Charles Leclerc. Kimi Antonelli placed fourth for Mercedes at 0.303 seconds back, followed by George Russell, Oscar Piastri, Nico Hülkenberg, Lando Norris, Pierre Gasly, and Isack Hadjar rounding out the top ten. Kiwi driver Liam Lawson also delivered a strong opening to his weekend, placing sixth-fastest in FP2 with a time of 1m 36.331s and running seventh overall at +0.462 in later sessions.

Team Upgrades and Pressures

Ferrari entered the weekend with car upgrades and strong backing as company dignitaries watched on, with team principal Zak Brown pointing to Ferrari as the team to beat. Meanwhile, Racing Bulls equipped Liam Lawson and teammate Arvid Lindblad with four major new components in what is likely the team's final upgrade package of the year. Track limits played a prominent role across practice, with several drivers having fast laps deleted, including Leclerc and Lawson.

Context

Formula One practice sessions allow teams to fine-tune car setups and test tyre compounds ahead of qualifying and race day. The Circuit of the Americas in Austin is known for its bumpy track surface, which heavily impacts car handling and driver strategy.