McLaren set the pace in the opening practice session for the Dutch Grand Prix as Lando Norris led a one-two for the championship leaders.

Almost every driver took advantage of the opportunity to test the soft tyres in the opening session as the weather forecast indicates today’s second session will be affected by rain.

Andrea Kimi Antonelli was unable to do so, however, as he skidded off the track early in the session and was unable to take any further part in proceedings. The Mercedes driver understeered wide in the slow turn nine right-hander and came to a rest in a deep gravel bed. That triggered the only red flag interruption of the session, just over 10 minutes after it began.

The track was very dusty at the start of the session. Antonelli wasn’t the only driver to be caught out by the lack of grip but the others were able to continue after their dramas.

Lewis Hamilton performed a spectacular 360-degree spin approaching the steeply banked Hugenholzbocht. He kept his Ferrari out of the barriers, however. Yuki Tsunoda also survived a spin at the Hans Ernst Bocht. Late in the session George Russell went off in the sole remaining Mercedes at Tarzan but was able to continue.

Norris looked immediately comfortable on his return to the track where he scored his second career victory last year. He was the first driver to switch from the medium tyres to softs and immediately lowered the benchmark by a second and a half with a lap of 1’10.278.

His team mate Oscar Piastri couldn’t get within four tenths of a second of that with his first effort. On his next he cut Norris’ margin to just under three tenths.

Advert | Become a RaceFans supporter and

None of McLaren’s regular rivals could get close to their times. Aston Martin were next best, led by Lance Stroll, who waited until late in the session to set a competitive time. Team mate Fernando Alonso was immediately behind him.

Alexander Albon was fifth fastest, narrowly ahead of Max Verstappen, who was one of the later drivers to switch to the softs. The Red Bull driver’s session came to a bizarre end as he skidded off at Tarzan moments after performing a practice start. “I’m stuck,” the world champion told his team before climbing out.

Gabriel Bortoleto was the fastest Ferrari-powered driver with ninth place in his Sauber. The works cars could only manage 14th and 15th for Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton respectively.

2025 Dutch Grand Prix Grand Prix first practice result

P.#DriverTeamModelTimeGapLaps
14Lando NorrisMcLaren-MercedesMCL391’10.27835
281Oscar PiastriMcLaren-MercedesMCL391’10.5700.29232
318Lance StrollAston Martin-MercedesAMR251’10.7790.50125
414Fernando AlonsoAston Martin-MercedesAMR251’10.8410.56325
523Alexander AlbonWilliams-MercedesFW471’11.1710.89333
61Max VerstappenRed Bull-Honda RBPTRB211’11.2180.94024
763George RussellMercedesW161’11.3861.10829
855Carlos Sainz JnrWilliams-MercedesFW471’11.4581.18033
95Gabriel BortoletoSauber-FerrariC451’11.5091.23130
1010Pierre GaslyAlpine-RenaultA5251’11.6131.33530
1130Liam LawsonRacing Bulls-Honda RBPT021’11.7531.47529
126Isack HadjarRacing Bulls-Honda RBPT021’11.7721.49430
1327Nico HulkenbergSauber-FerrariC451’11.8751.59730
1416Charles LeclercFerrariSF-251’11.9511.67332
1544Lewis HamiltonFerrariSF-251’11.9601.68228
1622Yuki TsunodaRed Bull-Honda RBPTRB211’12.1261.84824
1731Esteban OconHaas-FerrariVF-251’12.1441.86629
1843Franco ColapintoAlpine-RenaultA5251’12.2761.99827
1987Oliver BearmanHaas-FerrariVF-251’12.5642.28630
2012Andrea Kimi AntonelliMercedesW161’14.2753.9976

Advert | Become a RaceFans supporter and

2025 Dutch Grand Prix

Browse all 2025 Dutch Grand Prix articles