P1racenews AI automatic summary:
Verstappen destroys Red Bull suspicions with FP1 dominance
Max Verstappen showed no signs of being affected by the FIA’s technical directive in the first practice for the Japanese Grand Prix, setting the fastest lap time ahead of Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz. Red Bull’s Team Principal Christian Horner denied that the team had been affected by the directive, attributing their drop in pace to a tough event in Singapore. Lando Norris also performed well, finishing third and putting McLaren in contention for a podium finish on Sunday. Each driver had two extra sets of tires for the session, as part of a Pirelli prototype tire test for next season. The session had some minor incidents, such as Kevin Magnussen going off track and Oscar Piastri hitting a kerb, but overall it was a straightforward session. Verstappen led the timesheets, followed by Sainz and Norris, with Yuki Tsunoda and Charles Leclerc close behind. Fernando Alonso, Lando Norris, and Alex Albon were among the other notable performers.
Source: RacingNews 365
