The China Mail - Norris edges Piastri as McLaren top Jeddah practice

The Briton led a McLaren 1-2 in the night run at the Jeddah Corniche Circuit, his best time of 1min 28.267s edging his in-form teammate Oscar Piastri by a tenth of a second.

Piastri arrived at the Red Sea track on a high, after his second win of the season in Sakhir moved him to second, three points behind Norris, in the fledgling world championship standings.

In contrast, Norris, winner of the season-opener in Melbourne, was out of sorts in qualifying in Bahrain and in the race itself, doing well in the circumstances to make the podium.

Max Verstappen and Red Bull had a rough time in Bahrain, the four-time world champion only finishing sixth, sparking crisis talks in the team on how to improve their car.

The Dutchman, a winner in Jeddah last year and 2022, posted the third quickest time, almost three tenths of a second behind. Ferrari's Charles Leclerc and Williams' Carlos Sainz completed the top five.

The session began with one driver missing.

Gabriel Bortoleto's Sauber developed a fuel leak before the session began forcing the Brazilian out.

That was not helpful for the rookie, as it robbed him of a crucial run out in evening race conditions under the floodlights.

In the early stages, with the track as busy as downtown rush hour in Jeddah, Lance Stroll came to an unscripted stop at turn one, the Canadian locking up his Aston Martin prompting a brief yellow flag.

Norris, eager to find his McLaren's 'sweet spot' after admitting to struggling to unlock the full potential of his 2025 car, held early sway, but only by a mere one thousandth of a second from his teammate and main championship rival Piastri.

Pierre Gasly, the star of opening practice in the bright afternoon sunshine, complained about brake issues on his Alpine, which forced the Frenchman to pit.

Leclerc then took charge briefly in his Ferrari by a tenth of a second.

- Tsunoda crash -

Midway through the one hour of action, Verstappen upped the tempo, the Dutchman going almost four tenths clear of Sainz, who this time last year was struggling with appendicitis which was to rule him out of the 2024 race.

Then, in a sign of the fierce battle Red Bull face against the generally faster McLarens, Piastri, riding the kerbs, bettered Verstappen's time, only for Norris to go even quicker

A series of drivers brushed the walls that line the fast, purpose built street circuit.

One was Tsunoda, who crashed into the barrier at the final corner to bring out the red flag in the closing 10 minutes, leaving the Red Bull mechanics with work to do to repair his heavily dented car.

That ruined what had been a good day for the Japanese driver in his third race since succeeding Liam Lawson as Verstappen's teammate.

"Sorry guys," he said on the team radio having posted the sixth quickest time.

"I was just turning too much, no control, it's a shame. My confidence level was pretty good," he added later.

Lewis Hamilton faces a potential penalty. Stewards are investigating the Ferrari driver for impeding Alex Albon's Williams.

Final practice is on Saturday afternoon ahead of night-time qualifying for this fifth round of the 24-race season.

C.Mak--ThChM