McLaren’s Lando Norris went fastest during first practice for the 2025 Formula 1 Japanese Grand Prix at Suzuka, setting a laptime of 1:28.549s.
Second in the order was Mercedes’ George Russell, just 0.163s shy of Norris’ benchmark effort with Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc 0.416s back from the McLaren driver in third.
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Rounding out the top five was Ferrari’s Lewis Hamilton and Red Bull’s Max Verstappen, both within five and a half tenths of Norris’ time.
Yuki Tsunoda performed admirably, just a tenth shy of his new Red Bull team-mate in sixth as Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso went seventh fastest.
Racing Bulls’ Isack Hadjar, Mercedes’ Andrea Kimi Antonelli and Williams’ Carlos Sainz rounded out the top-10.
You can review the full session results below.
| Position | Driver | Team | Time | Gap | Laps |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lando Norris | McLaren | 1:28.549 | 24 | |
| 2 | George Russell | Mercedes | 1:28.712 | 0.163 | 29 |
| 3 | Charles Leclerc | Ferrari | 1:28.965 | 0.416 | 27 |
| 4 | Lewis Hamilton | Ferrari | 1:29.051 | 0.502 | 25 |
| 5 | Max Verstappen | Red Bull | 1:29.065 | 0.516 | 23 |
| 6 | Yuki Tsunoda | Red Bull | 1:29.172 | 0.623 | 25 |
| 7 | Fernando Alonso | Aston Martin | 1:29.222 | 0.673 | 25 |
| 8 | Isack Hadjar | Racing Bulls | 1:29.225 | 0.676 | 28 |
| 9 | Andrea Kimi Antonelli | Mercedes | 1:29.284 | 0.735 | 28 |
| 10 | Carlos Sainz | Williams | 1:29.333 | 0.784 | 28 |
| 11 | Alex Albon | Williams | 1:29.392 | 0.843 | 25 |
| 12 | Ryo Hirakawa | Alpine | 1:29.394 | 0.845 | 24 |
| 13 | Liam Lawson | Racing Bulls | 1:29.536 | 0.987 | 28 |
| 14 | Pierre Gasly | Alpine | 1:29.547 | 0.998 | 23 |
| 15 | Oscar Piastri | McLaren | 1:29.708 | 1.159 | 25 |
| 16 | Lance Stroll | Aston Martin | 1:29.758 | 1.209 | 25 |
| 17 | Nico Hulkenberg | Sauber | 1:30.023 | 1.474 | 21 |
| 18 | Oliver Bearman | Haas | 1:30.077 | 1.528 | 17 |
| 19 | Esteban Ocon | Haas | 1:30.123 | 1.574 | 21 |
| 20 | Gabriel Bortoleto | Sauber | 1:30.147 | 1.598 | 26 |
