Red Bull's Max Verstappen clinched the pole position in the first practice session of the Spanish Grand Prix.

Auto Racing General

Red Bull's Max Verstappen clinched the pole position in the first practice session of the Spanish Grand Prix.

Red Bull's Max Verstappen set a sizzling pace and made a perfect start to claim the top position in the first practice session of the Spanish Grand Prix ahead of Red Bull Racing teammate Sergio Perez.

Verstappen will be going into the weekend hoping to extend his Championship lead with a second consecutive Spanish GP victory, and it’s been so far, so good for the Dutchman.

The Red Bull duo quickly switched to the soft tire, and Perez managed to take the lead on the leaderboard. However, Verstappen promptly responded by posting a time of 1:14.606s, surpassing his teammate’s time by a remarkable 0.768s, just moments later.

Esteban Ocon continued his impressive form following on from his podium in the Monaco Grand Prix and put himself behind the Red Bull pair.

Nyck de Vries needs to put in a strong performance this weekend, with rumours circling of Red Bull looking to replace him in the AlphaTauri seat and he started well, putting in a storming lap to finish the session in fourth ahead of BWT Alpine F1 Team’s Pierre Gasly.

Home favourite Fernando Alonso secured the sixth-fastest time for Aston Martin after a slow start to the session, ahead of Haas F1 Team’s Kevin Magnussen.

The Scuderia Ferrari duo of Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz Jr. followed in eighth and ninth place, with Sainz being the sole Ferrari driver testing their upgraded package during the first practice, but rather worryingly finishing behind his teammate.

For Mercedes-AMG Petronas F1 Team, George Russell claimed tenth position, while Lewis Hamilton, a six-time victor at this circuit, finished in twelfth place.