2024 F1 Round 22 Las Vegas Grand Prix FP1–FP2: Hamilton tops both Friday sessions (Beijing time), Mercedes 1–2 in FP1 and Tsunoda tenth in FP2, quickest across RB and Red Bull

The 2024 Formula 1 Las Vegas Grand Prix, Round 22 of the season, got under way at the Las Vegas Strip Circuit on 22 November, Beijing time. Lewis Hamilton set the fastest lap in both Friday practice sessions, Beijing time: a 1:35.001 in FP1 put him 0.396s ahead of team mate George Russell as Mercedes took the top two places. He then topped FP2 with a 1:33.825, his advantage over Lando Norris now an astonishingly small 0.011s.

With night-time air temperatures of just 15°C and the track at 16°C, low grip was the biggest issue on the opening day. Liam Lawson described the circuit as “just like the wet”. Conditions continued to improve as rubber was laid down, and the Mercedes W15 showed its strength in the cold, conditions it has consistently preferred this season. Norris was third in FP1, 0.953s behind, followed by Charles Leclerc and Max Verstappen. Verstappen also complained at one point of a steering-wheel connection problem, while Carlos Sainz finished sixth and Fernando Alonso seventh.

RB arrived with an RB20 rear-suspension specification and aerodynamic upgrades to the sidepods and engine cover, but endured a difficult FP1: Yuki Tsunoda was 19th and Lawson 20th, leaving the upgrades’ potential still to be converted into performance. Tsunoda rebounded strongly in FP2 to finish tenth, 1.172s off the pace, the quickest of the four drivers across RB and Red Bull. Verstappen, 17th, and Sergio Pérez, 19th, continued to struggle, with their running disrupted by the red flag and their times set on medium tyres. FP2 also featured a stoppage when Albon’s Williams came to a halt out on the circuit with a fuel-system problem, bringing out the red flag. After an interruption of around five minutes, the teams switched to heavy-fuel long runs and nobody improved their time. On his first visit to Las Vegas, Lawson ended the opening day 15th, 0.674s behind his team mate, while Franco Colapinto was 18th.

Before the event, McLaren CEO Zak Brown named Mercedes and Ferrari as favourites for victory, but said his own team still had the ability to fight for pole in qualifying. FP3 will take place on the morning of 23 November, Beijing time, with qualifying that same afternoon.

FP1 results (top 20):

FP2 results (top 20):