George Russell has kicked off the Azerbaijan Grand Prix weekend on top with a lightning-fast lap in opening practice. The Mercedes driver clocked a 1m45.387s at the tight and technical Baku City Circuit, getting a massive tow from Fernando Alonso's Aston Martin down the long straight to edge out the competition. It's the kind of performance you'd want heading into Friday evening, and it shows Mercedes' straight-line speed is something serious to reckon with this weekend.

More F1 news: Russell Fastest in Baku FP1 as Antonelli's Championship Lead Takes a Hit

Max Verstappen came through in second for Oracle Red Bull Racing, just four tenths behind Russell, while Charles Leclerc grabbed third in his Ferrari. Lewis Hamilton rounded out the top four in the other Ferrari, showing the Prancing Horse is competitive around Baku despite some earlier reliability drama. Andrea Kimi Antonelli in the second Mercedes completed the top five, though he had to settle for it after losing chunks of the session to hydraulic trouble. The Italian's lack of running is a real concern, especially given his championship contention.

More F1 news: Russell Leads Chaotic Azerbaijan FP1 as McLaren and Red Bull Battle Gremlins

It was honestly a bit of a rough day for some of the grid's heavyweights. McLaren's both suffered. Lando Norris managed just 14 laps thanks to various gremlins, while Oscar Piastri spent considerable time in the garage as well. They'll have a mountain of work to do before Saturday's race, as they desperately needed to gather data on their new upgrades. Red Bull also had their drama, with Isack Hadjar's session turning into a nightmare. The young driver battled brake issues from the word go before what appeared to be an engine problem forced him to park up, chalking up just eight measly laps. After missing three races, he was hungry for track time to shake off the rust, so this'll sting.

More F1 news: Russell Dominates Baku FP1 as Ferrari and Mercedes Lock Out Top Four

Other teams weren't immune to Friday's gremlins either. Carlos Sainz took a brake fire early on that cost him valuable running, while Nico Hulkenberg had to call it a day after parking up late in the session. With so much mechanical mayhem happening across the grid, plenty of outfits have their work cut out in the garage tonight. They'll need to rebuild bits, sort reliability issues, and try to salvage what data they can before second practice. That's the thing about Baku, though, it's demanding and unforgiving.

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