Charles Leclerc leads Lando Norris in opening Singapore Grand Prix practice

Charles Leclerc topped the timesheets ahead of Lando Norris in the opening practice session for the 2024 F1 Singapore Grand Prix.

Ferrari have introduced a new front wing for this weekend as they look to improve on their performance from a week ago in Azerbaijan.

However, like in Baku, Ferrari and McLaren appear to be the top teams again, at least after the first practice session of the weekend.

Leclerc and Norris exchanged times at the top of the timesheets, with their initial runs completed on the hard and medium tyres, respectively.

After making an error in the final sector on his first soft lap - a lap which he called “shi*” over the team radio - Leclerc made amends, storming to the top of the order with a 1m31.763s.

Leclerc’s top time was just under a tenth quicker than Norris, with Ferrari’s advantage coming in the final two-thirds of the lap.

The second Ferrari of Carlos Sainz completed the top three, just under two-tenths off Leclerc’s time.

Max Verstappen will be hoping to bounce back from a lacklustre weekend in Azerbaijan.

The Marina Bay Street Circuit isn’t expected to suit the RB20 this weekend, as the Dutchman ended the session fourth-fastest with a 1m32.097s.

Yuki Tsunoda was an impressive fifth in the VCARB, ahead of Oscar Piastri, who struggled for overall pace relative to Norris.

Piastri’s early running was curtailed by an unusual issue in his McLaren garage, where they were unable to detach one of the wheels.

Daniel Ricciardo ended up seventh, confirming VCARB’s impressive early pace, while Alex Albon led Fernando Alonso and Esteban Ocon.

Lewis Hamilton bemoaned the handling of his Mercedes as he finished 12th overall.

With FP1 starting in daylight, it’s mostly an unrepresentative session.

FP2 will be the most crucial session of the weekend, given that the start time is more in line with qualifying and the race start.