[10][11][12] The only free practice session was held on 19 April 2024, at 11:30 local time (UTC+8),[1] and was topped by Lance Stroll of Aston Martin ahead of Oscar Piastri of McLaren and Max Verstappen of Red Bull Racing.[1] In a session heavily affected by rain, Lando Norris of McLaren took sprint pole position ahead of Lewis Hamilton and Fernando Alonso.[14][15] Norris' pole position time was initially deleted due to a track limits violation at turn 17 in the preceding lap.[1] Verstappen set the fastest lap time in all sessions, earning Red Bull Racing's 100th pole position in their history.Pérez soon regained the position as brief contact between Nico Hülkenberg of Haas and Alonso's Aston Martin teammate Lance Stroll was observed and investigated by stewards.During the restart, Alonso locked up into turn 14, creating a concertina effect which culminated into Lance Stroll hitting the rear of Ricciardo's car, pitching it upward from the impact and pushing it into the McLaren of Oscar Piastri.In an interview following the race, Ricciardo, who had a chance to score his first points of the season, revealed that he was displeased with the crash, criticising Stroll's lack of responsibility regarding the incident.[35] The safety car period ended on lap 31, with Verstappen leading the race ahead of Norris and Charles Leclerc of Ferrari.During this period, Alonso's car snapped at the final straight, but swiftly recovered to gain DRS, and Stroll and Magnussen, who both had ten-second penalties, had a brief battle for sixteenth.
Norris, Hamilton and Alonso starting in top three for the Sprint Race