Norris leads McLaren to top spot in Australian GP practice amid Bearman crash drama
Lando Norris claimed the fastest time in the first practice session of the Australian Grand Prix, following a significant crash involving Haas rookie Oliver Bearman at Turn 9-10.
Bearman lost control exiting the chicane and hit the barriers after his car bottomed out between the gravel trap and tarmac. Though the crash caused substantial damage to his car, he emerged unharmed. The incident led to a 12-minute red flag period.
Norris set the benchmark time of 1m17.252s on soft tires in the final minutes, improving on last year's FP1 time by 1.3 seconds. Williams' Carlos Sainz impressed with second place, followed by Ferrari's Charles Leclerc in third, 0.209s off the pace.
Oscar Piastri secured fourth position, while reigning champion Max Verstappen placed fifth after a challenging session that included a brief off-track excursion at Turn 6. Alex Albon rounded out the top six for Williams.
Notable incidents included:
- George Russell's off-track moment at Turn 4
- Lewis Hamilton's challenging Ferrari debut in 12th place
- Rookie Jack Doohan causing an early red flag after spreading gravel on track
- Liam Lawson's light contact with barriers at Turn 9
F1 car races on track
An unfortunate crash for Ollie Bearman brings out the red flag 😱
Bearman is ok and heading back to the garage#F1 #AusGP pic.twitter.com/GxnoqnLKAk
F1 Australian GP Practice 1 Results