The first day of the Dutch Grand Prix weekend at Circuit Zandvoort was a statement for McLaren. Lando Norris dominated both practice sessions on Friday, signaling that the team could be the benchmark heading into qualifying. With precision driving and consistent pace, Norris set the tone for McLaren’s weekend, leaving rivals to play catch-up.
In the opening practice session, Norris recorded a fastest lap of 1:10.278, immediately showing his comfort on Zandvoort’s challenging banked corners and high-speed bends. His teammate Oscar Piastri was close behind in second, just 0.292 seconds off the pace, securing a McLaren one-two and underlining the team’s strong start. Aston Martin were competitive as well, with Lance Stroll and Fernando Alonso occupying third and fourth. Stroll impressed with a sharp and controlled lap, while Alonso, despite being slightly behind his teammate, demonstrated the speed that has kept him among the championship contenders.
Williams provided an early surprise with Alexander Albon finishing fifth, ahead of home hero Max Verstappen, who ended the session sixth. Verstappen, despite the support of the Dutch fans, struggled to find a perfect rhythm and will need to improve if he wants to challenge for pole. Ferrari experienced a quiet session, with Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton finishing outside the top ten. Both drivers struggled to extract maximum performance from their cars, leaving questions about the team’s pace going into the weekend.
The second session confirmed McLaren’s dominance. Norris once again topped the charts with a faster 1:09.890 lap, shaving nearly four-tenths off his FP1 time. Fernando Alonso emerged as his closest competitor, finishing just 0.087 seconds behind, while Piastri maintained third place, highlighting McLaren’s consistency and control. George Russell delivered Mercedes’ best result in fourth, but Verstappen could only manage fifth, over half a second slower than Norris, raising concerns for Red Bull on home turf.
Further down the order, Ferrari continued to struggle. Hamilton and Leclerc finished sixth and eighth, respectively, with Yuki Tsunoda slotting between them in seventh for Red Bull. Rookie Franco Colapinto made a significant impression, bouncing back from eighteenth in FP1 to ninth in FP2, giving Alpine a boost and showing his growing confidence. Nico Hulkenberg and Oliver Bearman put in solid performances for Kick Sauber and Haas, rounding out a competitive midfield.
Not all drivers enjoyed smooth sessions. Lance Stroll, so strong in the morning, was limited to just seven laps in the afternoon, dropping to eighteenth. Kimi Antonelli, the Mercedes junior, logged only six laps in FP1 before improving to twelfth in FP2, showing that experience is still a factor. Other teams such as Racing Bulls and Williams were consistent but still need to find extra pace to challenge the top McLarens.
McLaren’s performance on Friday positions them as the team to beat heading into qualifying. Verstappen faces the challenge of raising his pace to meet the expectations of his home crowd, while Aston Martin and Mercedes look capable of disrupting McLaren’s momentum if they can close the gap. With speed, consistency, and confidence on their side, McLaren enters the weekend as the team setting the benchmark at Zandvoort, and the stage is set for a thrilling qualifying battle on Saturday.McLaren Dominate Zandvoort as Norris Tops Both Practice Sessions
The first day of the Dutch Grand Prix weekend at Circuit Zandvoort was a statement for McLaren. Lando Norris dominated both practice sessions on Friday, signaling that the team could be the benchmark heading into qualifying. With precision driving and consistent pace, Norris set the tone for McLaren’s weekend, leaving rivals to play catch-up.
In the opening practice session, Norris recorded a fastest lap of 1:10.278, immediately showing his comfort on Zandvoort’s challenging banked corners and high-speed bends. His teammate Oscar Piastri was close behind in second, just 0.292 seconds off the pace, securing a McLaren one-two and underlining the team’s strong start. Aston Martin were competitive as well, with Lance Stroll and Fernando Alonso occupying third and fourth. Stroll impressed with a sharp and controlled lap, while Alonso, despite being slightly behind his teammate, demonstrated the speed that has kept him among the championship contenders.
Williams provided an early surprise with Alexander Albon finishing fifth, ahead of home hero Max Verstappen, who ended the session sixth. Verstappen, despite the support of the Dutch fans, struggled to find a perfect rhythm and will need to improve if he wants to challenge for pole. Ferrari experienced a quiet session, with Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton finishing outside the top ten. Both drivers struggled to extract maximum performance from their cars, leaving questions about the team’s pace going into the weekend.
The second session confirmed McLaren’s dominance. Norris once again topped the charts with a faster 1:09.890 lap, shaving nearly four-tenths off his FP1 time. Fernando Alonso emerged as his closest competitor, finishing just 0.087 seconds behind, while Piastri maintained third place, highlighting McLaren’s consistency and control. George Russell delivered Mercedes’ best result in fourth, but Verstappen could only manage fifth, over half a second slower than Norris, raising concerns for Red Bull on home turf.
Further down the order, Ferrari continued to struggle. Hamilton and Leclerc finished sixth and eighth, respectively, with Yuki Tsunoda slotting between them in seventh for Red Bull. Rookie Franco Colapinto made a significant impression, bouncing back from eighteenth in FP1 to ninth in FP2, giving Alpine a boost and showing his growing confidence. Nico Hulkenberg and Oliver Bearman put in solid performances for Kick Sauber and Haas, rounding out a competitive midfield.
Not all drivers enjoyed smooth sessions. Lance Stroll, so strong in the morning, was limited to just seven laps in the afternoon, dropping to eighteenth. Kimi Antonelli, the Mercedes junior, logged only six laps in FP1 before improving to twelfth in FP2, showing that experience is still a factor. Other teams such as Racing Bulls and Williams were consistent but still need to find extra pace to challenge the top McLarens.
McLaren’s performance on Friday positions them as the team to beat heading into qualifying. Verstappen faces the challenge of raising his pace to meet the expectations of his home crowd, while Aston Martin and Mercedes look capable of disrupting McLaren’s momentum if they can close the gap. With speed, consistency, and confidence on their side, McLaren enters the weekend as the team setting the benchmark at Zandvoort, and the stage is set for a thrilling qualifying battle on Saturday.
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