Russell quickest in Singapore practice, Leclerc second and Norris third

George Russell led Charles Leclerc in practice at the Singapore Grand Prix on 9 October 2026, setting the fastest time of the session with Leclerc 0.198 seconds adrift. McLaren's Lando Norris was third fastest, completing the top three in the session.

Russell suffered an engine failure while running third in the closing stages of the Bahrain Grand Prix in Malaysia and has reverted to a previous specification of car for Singapore, while Mercedes team-mate Kimi Antonelli is running the new aerodynamic package introduced in Malaysia. Mercedes said the split-spec approach is intended to give the team a clearer read on whether the upgrade is working after they struggled for pace in Malaysia when they expected to make a step forward.

Russell set the benchmark in the session, with Leclerc 0.198 seconds behind him. Norris was 0.273secs adrift in third and Ferrari's Lewis Hamilton fourth, 0.499secs off the pace, while McLaren's Oscar Piastri completed the top five.

The top five drivers were all using the soft-compound tyres; Red Bull's Max Verstappen was the fastest driver on the medium tyres in sixth place. The four-time champion was 0.732secs off the pace and 0.519secs quicker than Mercedes' Kimi Antonelli, who was seventh and also on the medium tyres.

The session was the only practice of the weekend, with sprint qualifying scheduled for 13:30 BST, and the different tyre choices across the field made it difficult to draw clear conclusions about relative race pace.

Verstappen, who took his and Red Bull's first win of the year at Sepang, showed speed at times before tyre strategies diverged. His team-mate Isack Hadjar was eighth fastest on the medium, with Alpine's Pierre Gasly and Racing Bulls' Liam Lawson rounding out the top 10.

Aston Martin's Fernando Alonso had been inside the top 10 during the session but dropped back to finish 14th. Live commentary is available on BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra, with live text updates on the BBC Sport website and app.

Russell will start Sunday's Singapore Grand Prix from the back of the grid as a result of a penalty for using too many engine parts, following his engine failure while running third in the closing stages of the Bahrain Grand Prix in Malaysia.