F1 Spanish GP: George Russell leads FP1 while Lewis Hamilton obstructs multiple drivers.

George Russell of Mercedes clocked the fastest time during the inaugural Formula 1 session at the newly unveiled Madring track – Free Practice 1 for the Spanish Grand Prix.

Within the initial 100 seconds of the session, 20 out of 22 cars hit the fresh asphalt, with Nico Hulkenberg and Franco Colapinto joining the fray a bit later.

The initial flying laps were cautious, with most drivers posting times in the 1m42s-1m45s range, but Lewis Hamilton, Max Verstappen, and Lando Norris quickly broke into the 1m39s.

As the session progressed, lap times continued to improve, with Hamilton achieving a 1m36.066s just eight minutes in. The Ferrari driver consistently set faster benchmarks, lowering the mark to 1m35.563s and then 1m34.803s. His teammate Charles Leclerc managed to go 0.120s faster, but Hamilton reclaimed the top position with a 1m34.620s.

After all drivers except Gabriel Bortoleto (on hard tyres) utilized medium tyres in the session's first half, soft compounds were introduced.

However, the opening attempts from Kimi Antonelli and Russell on the softer tyre compound fell short of Hamilton’s medium-tyre benchmark by 0.063s and 0.109s, respectively.

Lewis Hamilton impeded several drivers

Russell's third lap, a 1m34.145s, was enough to take the lead, which he later improved to a 1m34.077s. Antonelli followed closely with a time of 1m34.363s, securing a Mercedes 1-2 finish.

Simultaneously, both Leclerc and Hamilton went wide at Turn 17. Leclerc only marginally improved his personal best, while his teammate became the only driver not to achieve his fastest lap on soft tyres – a distinction he shared with Yuki Tsunoda, who exited the session 25 minutes early due to a power steering failure on his Racing Bulls.

Verstappen finished in fifth place, ahead of Norris, Arvid Lindblad – who moved ahead of the rest of the midfield – and Oscar Piastri.

Hulkenberg, Liam Lawson, Bortoleto, Pierre Gasly, Esteban Ocon, and Colapinto followed in a time bracket of 1m35.5s-1m35.9s.

Home favorite Fernando Alonso placed 15th – a promising result by Aston Martin’s current performance standards – ahead of one Haas, both Williams, both Cadillacs, and teammate Lance Stroll.

The session's key incident occurred when Lindblad, on a flying lap, encountered the slow Mercedes and Ferrari of Antonelli and Hamilton in La Monumental.

Arvid Lindblad, Racing Bulls

“These same two guys, man!” the rookie vented over the team radio. “I don’t know what they’re doing, they’re just reckless, right in the fast corner! It’s really dangerous, this has happened twice now.”

Hamilton also found himself in further blocking incidents at the expense of teammate Leclerc and Hulkenberg. Carlos Sainz voiced his concerns about how the seven-time world champion allowed him to pass in La Monumental.

Photos from F1 Spanish GP - Friday