Norris headlines washed-out Canadian FP1 session

Rain, hail and shine all plagued the opening practice session of the Canadian Grand Prix, seeing Jack Doohan and the rest of the grid’s running significantly reduced as Lando Norris topped the tables in Montreal.

Prior to FP1’s proceedings, the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve was hit with a flash hailstorm, leaving a significant pool of standing water covering the entirety of the freshly resurfaced track.

The session started on schedule, however, the pitlane exit was closed and the 4.3km circuit was yellow-flagged, disallowing the drivers from commencing their Canadian Grand Prix running. 

Despite light rain continuing to fall, the pitlane exit opened with under 40 minutes remaining on the clock.

There were obvious reports of low grip levels from Lewis Hamilton, with the Mercedes driver being the first to brave the rain at the green light, with the added pressure of needing to configure his new power unit.

As the sun began shining from behind the rain clouds prompting more drivers to leave their garages, the grid was hit with yet another unwanted interruption.

After aquaplaning through Turn 5, Zhou Guanyu made heavy contact with the barrier, causing significant damage to his Sauber car.

The Chinese driver was forced to pull off to the edge of the track, awaiting removal. 

At the time of the Red Flag delay only three drivers had established laps, with the likes of Jack Doohan unable to add their names to the board.

With tyre constraints plaguing Doohan’s day, the Australian was only permitted to complete a very limited program.

The Alpine Reserve Driver managed a sole installation lap, waiting in his garage for the remainder of the session before timing it to join the practice starts on the grid.

Jack Doohan in the Alpine garage during FP1 at the Canadian GP. Image: Mark Sutton / Sutton Images.

He wasn’t alone in that, with half of the field, including Oscar Piastri, withholding their intermediate tyres for the later FP2 session that is also expected to be wet.

As for the early front-runners, Ferrari led the timing sheets after completing two flying laps each. 

Following closely behind the Italian outfit were their factory neighbours, with the Faenza-based RB team momentarily into P3 and P4, albeit a second behind.

Charles Leclerc was also the first driver to appear on the slick tyre, making the switch to the soft compound in the final five minutes of the session.

He wasn’t alone in that choice, with the McLarens, Red Bulls, Mercedes cars and more all gathering crucial data across a single flying lap.

It proved a difficult challenge for Leclerc, with the recent Monaco Grand Prix winner taking a trip across the grass at Turn 2 after finding a pool of standing water.

Albeit unrepresentative due to track/weather conditions, Lando Norris ended the reduced hour of practice with the fastest time, a 1:24.435s.

Piastri sat with the majority of the field, unable to set a strong time in P6.

Still quicker than his teammate, Daniel Ricciardo dropped back into 11th, finding a deep puddle in the grass at Turn 4 in the closing moments of FP1.

Max Verstappen also found that same puddle, with Valtteri Bottas and Lance Stroll having off-road excursions of their own in other sectors of the track.

The session ended with the drivers completing their practice starts on the now-dry grid, a welcomed relief from the weather that is expected to return for the second session of the day.

2024 Canadian Grand Prix Schedule:

Saturday June 8th:

FP1: 3:30 – 4:30

FP2: 7:00 – 8:00

Sunday June 9th:

FP3: 2:30 – 3:30

Qualifying: 6:00 – 7:00

Monday June 10th:

Race: 4:00

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