Ferrari set the pace in both practice sessions on Friday, but with FP2 having been effectively restricted to tyre testings, a true pecking order for Austin is yet to emerge.
Mercedes and Red Bull are only teams to have taken pole at the Texas-based track that first joined the calendar shortly after its completed in 2012. Mercedes, in fact, took six consecutive poles at COTA at the beginning of the V6 hybrid era, with its streak only ending last year when Max Verstappen beat Lewis Hamilton in qualifying.
