LAS VEGAS (USA) (ITALPRESS) – Free practice night in Las Vegas, the twenty-second round of the Formula One World Championship that makes a stop in the ‘Sin City’ of the Nevada desert for what could be the weekend of MaxVerstappen’s fourth world title. In fact, the Red Bull driver is at the first matchpoint of the season to win the championship, which, with an eleventy-two point lead over rival Lando Norris,now seems a matter of time. But the Friday in Las Vegas revealed, for the Dutchman and not only, many grip problems in both free practice sessions, due to the strong thermal excursion and cold asphalt temperatures to give the drivers no little trouble in terms of driveability of the cars. Mercedes surprise, which during Fp1 closes with Lewis Hamilton and George Russell in first and second position on the timesheet, in 1:35.001 and 1:35.397, respectively, followed by the McLaren of Norris, third about a second from the best performance of the seven-time world champion. Cars that, as mentioned, slip not a little on the asphalt, taking a few laps longer than expected to warm up the tires. Good race pace at Ferrari, with Charles Leclerc closing his first session in fourth position – 1:36.007 – showing a pace consistent with the times of McLaren, a direct rival for the constructors’ title. Monegasque followed then by Verstappen and Carlos Sainz, with the Spaniard in clear recovery from the negative weekend experienced in Brazil, closed with the accident that in the wet race at Interlagos cost him the withdrawal of the car. Performance, those of the number 55, also repeated during the second free practice session, closed with the fourth time – 1:34.105 – and ahead of Leclerc, showing good competitiveness both on the dry lap and in overall pace. Consistency repeated in photography also by Hamilton, fastest of the day with the best time set also in Fp2, closed in 1:33.825, confirming the good initial sensations of the Mercedes, third with Russell and at the pace of a McLaren struggling not so much on the dry lap and with low fuel load but more on the long run. It will therefore be the details that will make the difference, which for the moment do not smile on Red Bull, which was missing at the end of the second free practice session with both Verstappen and Sergio Perez, seventeenth and nineteenth respectively. The Austrian team will therefore have to aim for unacomplessiva ascent, as has often happened over several weekends thanks to the world champion skills of the sameVerstappen, who at a historical moment in which his car is no longer the strongest on the track will once again have to put some suoper sealing his fourth consecutive world title. – Photo Ipa Agency -(ITALPRESS).
