The China Mail - McLaren set pace in first practice at Dutch Grand Prix

Lando Norris held off teammate Oscar Piastri to register the fastest lap time of one minute 10.278 seconds, 0.292 seconds ahead of the Australian.

The first practice session was dry but windy and many drivers struggled to keep their cars on the track.

Kimi Antonelli from Mercedes slid off and beached his car in the gravel, with winching equipment required and the red flag deployed.

Red Bull's struggling Yuki Tsunoda also promptly spun off as the session was stopped after only 10 minutes of the alloted hour.

When practice resumed, McLaren again demonstrated the pace that has put them nearly 300 points clear in the constructors championship.

The Aston Martin pair of Lance Stroll and Fernando Alonso clocked the third and fourth best practice times, with home favourite Max Verstappen coming in sixth.

Ferrari had a disappointing first practice, with Charles Leclerc and seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton coming 14th and 15th respectively.

"We are miles off, like miles off" the pace, complained a disgruntled Leclerc on team radio.

One of the main talking points in the run-up to the Dutch GP has been the mood of Hamilton, whose high-profile move from Mercedes to Ferrari has not run smoothly.

Hamilton described himself as "completely useless" and said Ferrari should find a better driver after another disappointing finish in Hungary at the last GP.

The three-week summer break seemed to have lifted his spirits and he told reporters he wanted to rediscover the "fun" in Formula One from now on.

But his first practice run will have been anything but fun as he endured a full 360-degree spin, complaining of "flat spots all round" on the team radio.

McLaren are looking to tighten their grip on the constructors race as their two drivers battle it out for the World Championship.

Piastri is only nine points ahead of Norris with 10 races to go, with all eyes on whether the two teammates will be allowed to race competitively as the business end of the season approaches.

Verstappen finds himself in the unfamilar territory of third overall, nearly 100 points adrift of Piastri.

He too found himself stuck in the gravel late in the session, the four-time world champion reduced to wiping stones off his Red Bull chassis.

Verstappen will be hoping the famously unpredictable weather in Zandvoort -- a stone's throw from the North Sea beach -- will come to his rescue.

Rain is forecast for all three days of the racing weekend, potentially sparking "chaos", according to Verstappen, who excels in wet weather conditions.

Heavy rain is forecast for the second practice session, which start at 4pm local time (1400 GMT).

C.Smith--ThChM