Lando Norris resumed his championship duel with McLaren teammate Oscar Piastri by setting the pace in first practice for the Dutch Grand Prix. The Briton’s lap of 1m10.278s was nearly three tenths faster than Piastri, handing him the early advantage in their head-to-head battle for the Formula One title.
The opening session in Zandvoort proved unexpectedly eventful, with multiple drivers finding the gravel traps. Mercedes teenager Andrea Kimi Antonelli was the first casualty, beaching his car after just ten minutes.
Yuki Tsunoda also spun, and while he recovered, his excursion triggered yellow flags. Four-time champion Max Verstappen then provided the most dramatic moment, sliding into the Turn 1 gravel after the chequered flag had fallen in front of his home crowd.
Hamilton wanted to “have fun”
Ferrari endured another difficult start. Lewis Hamilton, determined to “have fun” again after a dismal outing in Hungary, spun early in the session and struggled for pace. Neither he nor Charles Leclerc could drag the red cars into contention, finishing a lowly 14th and 15th, almost two seconds off Norris.
The story of the session was McLaren’s superiority. Norris and Piastri quickly established themselves as the reference point around the banked Zandvoort circuit. Piastri briefly held top spot before Norris responded with a series of strong laps, his fastest placing him clear by 0.292s. Despite Piastri’s strength in the first sector, he could not claw back the deficit over the remainder of the lap.
It could be the old tyre management issues returned to plague the Australian. The pace of the McLaren pair left the rest trailing. Aston Martin’s Lance Stroll and Fernando Alonso were a much improved the best of the rest in third and fourth, though both were nearly seven tenths off Norris. Alex Albon impressed again for Williams in fifth, while Verstappen could do no better than sixth, 0.940s down after experimenting with a new front wing.
Antonelli flunks it again
Antonelli’s excursion into the gravel may well come back to bite him, given the session was just around 12 minutes old. With rain forecast on Friday afternoon, the Mercedes protege may not get another dry practice until just hours before qualifying. The Italian is under increasing pressure given a string of recent results that has brought just one point since his podium third in Canada.
Antonelli is just ten points ahead of Williams driver Alex Albon and given the capabilities of the car in the hands of team mate Russell, question marks over the future of Antonelli will surface with greater frequency.
George Russell did survive a trip through the sand at Tarzan corner, salvaging seventh. He was followed by Williams Carlos Sainz, Sauber rookie Gabriel Bortoleto, and Pierre Gasly, who rounded out the top ten.
For Ferrari, it was another bleak start to a race weekend. Leclerc’s radio message summed up the mood: “We are miles off, like miles off.” Hamilton’s attempt to inject joy into his new adventure fell flat, his half-spin and lack of pace leaving him adrift of the midfield. Both drivers finished more than 1.6 seconds away from Norris, leaving plenty of work to do before qualifying.
Russell explosive statement on Antonelli
Norris strikes first blow in team mate battle
And so, Norris strikes the first blow in round two of the championship fight, while McLaren look like they have arrived at Zandvoort with both hands firmly on the wheel. The papaya garage has become a fortress, while Ferrari resemble holidaymakers who turned up at the Dutch coast with beach chairs which promptly sank into the soft sand.
Verstappen, meanwhile, continues to add layers of drama at home. It is one thing to beach your Red Bull mid-session, but quite another to slide off after the chequered flag. Only Verstappen could provide his fans with both a practice start and a gravel-trap encore within the same cooldown lap. Zandvoort loves a show, and Max did not disappoint.
Speaking on Sky F1, 1997 champion Jacques Villeneuve believes Ferrari are where they are for a reason. “They’re not getting what they signed. So, there will be some frustration in there, from both camps, from the team [and] from Lewis, because he’s not getting the car he was wanting.
Ferrari woeful with troubles revealed
“He doesn’t feel the team is behind him. The team doesn’t feel Lewis is with them. It’s not gelling, and you can hear it when he’s communicating with his engineer on race day. There’s no chemistry, none at all.
“It’s as if they’re on different planets, and they don’t even communicate to each other. But the same is true with Leclerc and his engineer. There’s something really odd happening in that team that is not progressing in the right direction.
“And when you hear Lewis’ interviews, he doesn’t seem excited. He doesn’t seem to believe what he says. It’s like it’s as if he doesn’t want to go to work. It’s really, really strange.”
Cadillac unusual step: Using Ferrari car as F1 prep
FP2 rain predicted
The Ferrari melodrama continued over the summer break, with a grandee from the team claiming his contacts in the team have said that “90% of the engineers” were against the signing of Hamilton. Arturo Merzario was the man who saved Niki Laud’s life in 1975, when the dragged the Austrian from the inferno that was his wrecked Ferrari at the Nurburgring.
Back to Zandvoort, the predicted rain for FP2 saw a number of the teams switch their programmes. The usual race simulation long stint simulations which are a feature of the second session of a weekend, were crammed into the end of FP1, although the times are not conclusive given the lack of laps performed.
So, jury, what do we make of FP1? Did Norris land a psychological jab on Piastri, or is this just early-weekend noise? Can Verstappen deliver the home heroics once again, or will the gravel traps keep writing their own script? And should Ferrari’s drivers start looking for entertainment in the fairground rides outside the circuit instead.
Verstappen dismisses fellow drivers comments about 2026
Its just twenty one weeks time, the all new Formula One cars and powertrains will take to the Circuit de Catalunya for an extended pre-season series of tests. Most teams are now fully focused on the biggest regulation changes in living memory with just minor upgrades to come for their current challengers.
A large part of the design work is based on simulation tools which includes getting the drivers behind the wheel of a theoretical version of the new cars. Charles Leclerc was one of the first to break his silence stating boldly, “not the most enjoyable race car I’ve driven so far,” adding “I’m not a fan of it for now.” He attributed this to reduced downforce and the added complexity of energy management systems concluding “probably, less enjoyable for drivers to drive.”
With over 30 years of experience in Formula 1 as an insider journalist, I have built trusted connections across the paddock, from race engineers and mechanics to senior team figures. At The Judge 13, I and a handful of trusted colleagues share exclusive Formula 1 news, expert analysis and behind-the-scenes stories you will not find in mainstream motorsport media.
