Russell Leads Only Practice Session in Singapore as Mercedes Runs Older Spec Car

George Russell posted the quickest lap in the only practice session for the 2026 Singapore Grand Prix, completing the 5.063-kilometre circuit in 1:32.274 on soft tyres. His teammate Kimi Antonelli, who was testing an upgraded Mercedes, recorded a best time that placed him seventh, about 1.3 seconds off Russell's benchmark.

The session featured a mix of tyre strategies. Russell and most drivers spent the majority of the hour on hard tyres before switching to softs for a final run, while Antonelli used medium compounds before encountering an off-track excursion on his last full lap. During the hard-tyre phase, the two Mercedes cars were separated by just 0.056 seconds, with Antonelli ahead and Russell third behind Charles Leclerc's Ferrari.

Leclerc improved to second place on soft tyres, trailing Russell by 0.198 seconds. The McLaren drivers Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri occupied third and fifth positions respectively, with Lewis Hamilton's Ferrari in fourth. Max Verstappen's Red Bull was the fastest on medium tyres, finishing sixth.

The hour of running was briefly interrupted by yellow flags for drivers entering run-off areas and a virtual safety car period to recover Nico Hulkenberg's Audi, which suffered a gearbox failure and stopped on the main straight.

No further sessions are scheduled before the race weekend.