Mercedes driver George Russell led the practice session at the Singapore Grand Prix, with Ferrari's Charles Leclerc finishing 0.198 seconds behind him. McLaren's Lando Norris secured the third-fastest time, 0.273 seconds off Russell's pace, while Ferrari's Lewis Hamilton was fourth.
Despite his strong performance, Russell will start Sunday's race from the back of the grid. This penalty is a result of using too many engine parts, following an engine failure during the Bahrain Grand Prix in Malaysia.
The top five drivers, including McLaren's Oscar Piastri, all used soft-compound tyres. Red Bull's Max Verstappen, a four-time champion, was the fastest driver on medium tyres, placing sixth overall. His team-mate Isack Hadjar, also on medium tyres, was eighth fastest.
Mercedes is running different car specifications for Russell and Kimi Antonelli, who finished seventh. Russell has reverted to a previous specification, while Antonelli is using the new aerodynamic package introduced in Malaysia. This strategy aims to assess the effectiveness of the upgrade package after the team struggled for pace in Malaysia.
The practice session was the only one scheduled for the weekend, with sprint qualifying set to take place at 13:30 BST. Air quality warnings are in effect in Singapore due to haze from Indonesian wildfires, leading to record air pollution levels.