Source :- PERTH NOW NEWS
George Russell has outpaced his high-flying young teammate Kimi Antonelli in first practice for the Spanish Grand Prix in Madrid.
Russell finished 0.286 seconds clear of Antonelli as Mercedes set the pace on Formula One’s return to the Spanish capital after a 45-year hiatus on Friday.
Charles Leclerc was third, with his Ferrari teammate Lewis Hamilton a place behind.
Red Bull’s Max Verstappen and McLaren’s Lando Norris finished fifth and sixth respectively, while Australian star Oscar Piastri could only finish eighth in his McLaren, a place behind Racing Bulls’ Arvid Lindblad.
Russell’s world championship hopes were dealt a setback at the previous round in Monza after he saw title rival Antonelli win from 19th on the grid.
Antonelli is 66 points ahead of Russell with 10 rounds to go, starting here in Madrid for the first time since 1981. However, the Madring is a new street venue on the outskirts of the city.
A number of drivers feared the track, with its imposing concrete walls and high-speed corners, would lead to a series of accidents.
Indeed, Russell described the track as the most “risky” on the calendar and Verstappen suggested it could be a “car killer”.
But the one-hour running passed without incident, albeit in front of swathes of empty seats in the sparsely-populated grandstands.
F1 chiefs will hope the number of spectators increases over the remainder of the weekend.
