Formula One driver Lando Norris takes the front seat in initial practice sessions for the Azerbaijan Grand Prix.
The first practice session of the Azerbaijan Grand Prix saw Lando Norris take the lead, with McLaren's Oscar Piastri struggling due to a check engine light issue.
The session, which was delayed by 20 minutes due to an issue with the kerbs at the final corner, saw Norris set the fastest time, 0.310 seconds ahead of Piastri. However, Piastri's performance was not as strong as usual, ending the session down in 13th place.
Despite the delay and the engine issue, Piastri did not miss a significant amount of track action. McLaren managed to successfully fix the power unit issue before the end of the session.
Piastri could not match Norris's pace but managed to close the gap with a late lap. However, his strong finish was cut short as he was immediately sent back to the garage due to the check engine light issue.
In the second practice session, Ferrari proved to have the fastest car, with Lewis Hamilton setting the best time ahead of others. Charles Leclerc finished the session in third place for Ferrari, while George Russell was fourth for Mercedes.
Max Verstappen, the Monza winner, ended the session in seventh place, while Lewis Hamilton had a difficult moment, banging the wall and suffering a puncture and front wing damage.
The second practice session is scheduled to start at 1600 local time (1300 BST). The article does not provide information about the outcome of the practice session for drivers other than Norris and Piastri.
During the delay, a marshal was seen jumping up and down on the kerb to try and fix the issue. The points difference between Norris and Piastri, or the number of rounds remaining in the championship, were not mentioned in the article.
