Leclerc: I know which direction to take with the car

      Charles Leclerc topped the times in the first practice in Las Vegas and set the 3rd-best time in the second session, but Lewis Hamilton, his teammate at Ferrari, also said he was happy with the car, although he finished the day 10th.

      Charles Leclerc (3rd): "To be honest, I think we are in a pretty good position, although we shouldn't rush to conclusions and need to see how things develop. The Mercedes drivers look very strong, and McLaren and Red Bull are also contenders for the top spots, so the fight promises to be intense.

      I just hope we can build on what we achieved today and try to fight for pole on Saturday. But I consider Friday's outcome quite positive, because we are capable of a good pace. In preparing for qualifying we need to try to anticipate what the track conditions will be like tomorrow so we can start the day correctly, but I have a fairly clear idea of the direction we need to work on the car to try to achieve further improvements."

      Lewis Hamilton (10th): "Overall the impressions after the session are fairly normal, though they were already pretty good after the first practice, even though I didn't manage to do a quick lap, and the same happened in the second practice.

      For the second practice we were able to improve the setup, and I was especially good in the first sector, but unfortunately the session was interrupted several times by yellow and red flags. However, everyone was on an equal footing, and I was able to gather enough information, so I'm feeling ready to fight tomorrow.

      Of course it was very slippery at the start of the first session, but the track surface improved quickly — we'll see what it's like tomorrow. It's certainly very cold here, but there are lots of fans in the stands, although it wouldn't have hurt them to bring some hand warmers.

      All in all it's not bad, I'm happy with the car and I don't think we'll need to make any major setup changes in the build-up to tomorrow."