Norris heads Piastri in Azerbaijan practice

Oscar Piastri was able to capture a McLaren one-two during first practice at the Grand Prix of Azerbaijan under Lando Norris.

An incident-packed hour was revealed by the familiar look of the timesheets, with George Russell from Ferrari and Charles Leclerc coming in third and fourth.

For about 20 minutes, there was a red flag caused by a loose kerb, which limited the harm an engine problem could have had done to Piastri.

On the way to the 12th fastest time, Lewis Hamilton hit the wall in his Ferrari, causing damage to his front wing and puncturing himself.

At Turn 16, the final corner of the long pit straight, a rubber strip slipped out beneath the kerb, causing the delay.

The Australian managed 13 laps of the session compared to the Briton’s 18, which was in the lead over Norris by 31 points.

Leclerc was 0. 552 seconds off the pace as Norris finished 0. 310 seconds quicker than Piastri.

Max Verstappen of Red Bull’s late-race effort put him in the lead, but the team accidentally locked a wheel into Turn 15’s challenging downhill braking zone before heading into the escape road.

Verstappen came in seventh place overall, trailing only Alex Albon of Williams and Yuki Tsunoda, the Dutchman’s Red Bull teammate.

Carlos Sainz of Williams, whose car crashed under the Turn 16 kerb, was eighth fastest, ahead of Liam Lawson and Isack Hadjar, the other Racing Bulls.