FP1: Norris tops rain-affected opening practice in Montreal

F1 Grand Prix, GP Canada, Circuit Gilles Villeneuve

McLaren driver Lando Norris set the benchmark in a non-representative opening practice session at the Canadian Grand Prix as the field spent the majority of the one-hour session in the garages.

The Canadian Grand Prix weekend endured a slow start with a heavy rain shower and hailstorm arriving just an hour ahead of the beginning of the first one-hour session.

Although rainy weather has been predicted for the session, nobody expected the intensity that hit the track. The pit lane was closed for almost half an hour as track workers were intent on clearing the standing water that would have made any on-track action dangerous.

When the session started, Lewis Hamilton was the first to go out for an exploratory lap. He was soon joined by the Kick Sauber pair of Valtteri Bottas and Zhou Guanyu. The sun started to beat down, but the track surface was still very damp, and the Chinese driver aquaplaned through the Turn 5 right-hander and slid into the wall. The session was red-flagged, but Zhou's car was quickly cleared.

With the rainy weather set to make appearance during the rest of the weekend, drivers were intent on saving their tyres. Although Ferrari's Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc led the way until the closing stages of the session, McLaren's Lando Norris found himself atop the leaderboard with a late flying lap.

Lewis Hamilton ended up fourth behind the Ferrari duo with Max Verstappen taking fifth for Red Bull.

Esteban Ocon missed the opening session with Alpine reserve driver Jack Doohan having taken over his car. The Australian's session was heavily affected by the damp surface as he only racked up a total of three laps and failed to set a lap time.