Antonelli leads Mercedes 1-2 at new Madrid circuit as Lindblad crashes

Kimi Antonelli led both practice sessions for Mercedes at the new Madrid circuit on Friday, setting the pace ahead of Ferrari's Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton as Formula 1 made its debut at the Spanish Grand Prix venue. The championship leader's best lap of 1 minute 33.662 seconds in the second practice session was 0.113 seconds quicker than Leclerc's effort, with Hamilton a further 0.036 seconds behind. The session was red-flagged with 25 minutes remaining after Racing Bulls rookie Arvid Lindblad crashed at Turn 13, becoming the first driver to hit the barriers at the challenging 5.4-kilometer circuit. The 19-year-old lost control of his car and slid sideways into the TecPro barriers, walking away uninjured. "I'm really sorry, I lost it super early," Lindblad told his team over the radio. Lando Norris missed the entire second practice session after McLaren identified a gearbox issue following just two laps. The reigning world champion reported a "false neutral" problem over the radio, forcing the team to change his gearbox. Despite their efforts, Norris was unable to return to the track.