Charles Leclerc topped both Friday sessions at Circuit of the Americas by over six tenths on teammate Lewis Hamilton, but Ferrari's one-lap pace may come at the cost of tire degradation in the race. Leclerc acknowledged the clean Friday but warned rivals typically find more for qualifying than Ferrari does.
McLaren's disconnect deepened in Austin. Lando Norris called the car "very difficult to drive" and went slower in FP2 than FP1 after a big lock-up, insisting the team has to "try so hard to be perfect" just to be competitive. Yet chief technical officer Rob Marshall praised measurable aero gains from small upgrades and sounded optimistic about fighting at the front.
Aston Martin cracked the midfield again after weeks of disappointment, while Williams openly sacrificed Austin's competitiveness to gather data for 2026—a damning admission for a team that already punted on 2025.
Saturday qualifying will test whether Leclerc's edge holds when the engines turn up.
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