Carlos Sainz bests Max Verstappen to put Ferrari on top in US GP's first practice

Carlos Sainz set the quickest time in the opening practice session for this weekend's United States Grand Prix. The Ferrari driver was always in contention for the fastest time of the session, setting it with just over 10 minutes remaining in the 60-minute session.

2022 F1 Drivers' champion Max Verstappen was second quickest in the Red Bull, followed by Mercedes-AMG's Lewis Hamilton. The Silver Arrows brought its final car update of the season to the race, hoping the new floor will bring more stability to the car and counter the excessive bouncing at high speeds.

Early indications suggest that the updates are indeed working, but we'll have greater clarity on this throughout the weekend.

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Five fresh faces

As per F1's 2022 regulations, all teams must dedicate at least two First Practice sessions in the season to young driver development. This weekend, Ferrari, McLaren, Alfa Romeo, Williams, and Haas featured a driver in place of one of their regular pilots.

Robert Shwartzman (Ferrari, Charles Leclerc stand-in), Alex Palou (McLaren, Daniel Ricciardo), Theo Pourchaire (Alfa Romeo, Valtteri Bottas), Logan Sargeant (Williams, Nicholas Latifi), and Antonio Giovinazzi (Haas, Kevin Magnussen) all took to the track. Almost expectedly, they were also the five slowest at the end of the session.

READ: WRAP | 2022 US Grand Prix - Carlos Sainz quickest in opening practice

An elated Pourchaire said over the Alfa Romeo team radio when he returned to the pits: "That was awesome! Incredible, guys; thank you very much. Super experience!"

Giovinazzi, a seasoned driver with 67 F1 races to his name, exited the session early after crashing the car. For