George Russell fastest in Singapore GP practice 1
NXTbets Pro | Published On: October 9, 2026
One practice before sprint qualifying
George Russell led first practice for the Singapore Grand Prix, turning a lap of 1:32.274 to finish quickest in the only practice session before sprint qualifying Friday. Charles Leclerc followed in second, 0.198 seconds back, and Lando Norris took third. Lewis Hamilton finished fourth, Oscar Piastri fifth and Max Verstappen sixth. Kimi Antonelli placed seventh, Isack Hadjar was eighth, Pierre Gasly came ninth and Liam Lawson rounded out the top 10 in 10th.
Singapore heat bites
Russell set his fastest lap in Mercedes’ older-spec car during a session that ran in hot, humid, hazy, dusty and low-grip conditions. The track temperature reached 53 C. Teams switched to soft tyres for qualifying simulations in the final quarter of practice.
Hulkenberg gearbox stoppage
Nico Hulkenberg‘s Audi stopped on the main straight because of a gearbox problem, and the failure brought out a virtual safety car. The interruption came during the only practice run before sprint qualifying. That qualifying session was scheduled later Friday to set the grid for Singapore’s first sprint race.
