Lando Norris topped first practice for round 20 of the 2026 Formula 1 season at Interlagos on November 6. The McLaren driver set a 1:11.717, beating Kimi Antonelli by 0.082 seconds and Max Verstappen by 0.236. Lewis Hamilton, George Russell and Isack Hadjar completed a top six covered by 0.439 seconds.
The benchmark improved as drivers switched to soft tyres. According to Formula 1’s official session report, Antonelli first recorded a 1:12.777 on mediums before Verstappen went fastest on softs with a 1:11.953. Antonelli locked up and ran wide at Turn 1 on his first soft-tyre attempt, then improved to a 1:11.799, only for Norris to go quicker.
Norris retained first place to the end. He completed 33 laps, compared with Antonelli’s 32 and Verstappen’s 29. Teams moved to long-run simulations in the closing stages and the fastest time remained unchanged. The classification establishes the best laps of this session, but cannot on its own establish qualifying or race competitiveness.
A red flag and technical problems interrupted several programmes. Freddie Slater stopped his Audi on track, bringing out the red flag, and completed only seven laps. Alex Albon lost power steering with around 20 minutes remaining, ending his session after 18 laps in sixteenth. Verstappen complained over the radio about downshifts and later reported increasingly heavy steering.
Rookie outings were another feature of the session. Gabriele Mini, driving Pierre Gasly’s Alpine, finished seventh and was the highest-placed rookie stand-in in the top ten. Gabriel Bortoleto, Franco Colapinto and Liam Lawson followed. Leonardo Fornaroli was eleventh in Oscar Piastri’s McLaren, while Luke Browning was seventeenth in Carlos Sainz’s Williams.
Home driver Rafael Camara completed 30 laps in the number 51 Haas and finished eighteenth. Dino Beganovic, driving Charles Leclerc’s Ferrari, had a disrupted session in which the car’s floor was removed for a time. He managed only 11 laps and placed twenty-first. Those differing lap counts, alongside Slater’s seven, show why positions alone do not describe how much practice each driver completed.
Full FP1 classification
| Pos. | No. | Driver | Team | Time / gap | Laps |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | Lando Norris | McLaren | 1:11.717 | 33 |
| 2 | 12 | Kimi Antonelli | Mercedes | +0.082s | 32 |
| 3 | 3 | Max Verstappen | Red Bull Racing | +0.236s | 29 |
| 4 | 44 | Lewis Hamilton | Ferrari | +0.324s | 31 |
| 5 | 63 | George Russell | Mercedes | +0.386s | 30 |
| 6 | 6 | Isack Hadjar | Red Bull Racing | +0.439s | 25 |
| 7 | 62 | Gabriele Mini | Alpine | +0.852s | 28 |
| 8 | 5 | Gabriel Bortoleto | Audi | +0.897s | 30 |
| 9 | 43 | Franco Colapinto | Alpine | +0.937s | 34 |
| 10 | 30 | Liam Lawson | Racing Bulls | +0.998s | 32 |
| 11 | 67 | Leonardo Fornaroli | McLaren | +1.116s | 28 |
| 12 | 87 | Oliver Bearman | Haas F1 Team | +1.120s | 27 |
| 13 | 14 | Fernando Alonso | Aston Martin | +1.300s | 26 |
| 14 | 41 | Arvid Lindblad | Racing Bulls | +1.321s | 32 |
| 15 | 77 | Valtteri Bottas | Cadillac | +1.654s | 16 |
| 16 | 23 | Alexander Albon | Williams | +1.794s | 18 |
| 17 | 46 | Luke Browning | Williams | +1.874s | 12 |
| 18 | 51 | Rafael Câmara | Haas F1 Team | +1.979s | 30 |
| 19 | 18 | Lance Stroll | Aston Martin | +2.043s | 28 |
| 20 | 25 | Colton Herta | Cadillac | +2.558s | 31 |
| 21 | 38 | Dino Beganovic | Ferrari | +2.640s | 11 |
| 22 | 98 | Freddie Slater | Audi | +3.249s | 7 |
