Leclerc Leads Ferrari 1-2 in Chaotic Monaco FP1

Charles Leclerc kicked off his home weekend in style, topping first practice for the Monaco Grand Prix with a 1m13.978s lap. The Ferrari driver finished 0.226s clear of teammate Lewis Hamilton, giving the Scuderia an early one-two on the streets of Monte Carlo.

Max Verstappen was third for Red Bull, 0.513s off the pace, while championship leader Kimi Antonelli led a Mercedes charge in fourth ahead of George Russell. Lando Norris was sixth for McLaren, with Audi’s Nico Hulkenberg splitting the papaya cars in seventh. Oscar Piastri ended ninth after traffic compromised his best lap.

Why it matters:

Ferrari’s early dominance at Monaco is a strong signal for the rest of the weekend. Leclerc has never won his home race, and a car that can lock out the front row—especially with Hamilton now in the sister car—shows the team may finally have the package to end that drought. With title rivals Mercedes and Red Bull close but not quite matching, the Scuderia has laid down a marker.

The details:

• The session was interrupted by two red flags. The first came with 20 minutes left when Isack Hadjar crashed heavily at the Swimming Pool exit in his Red Bull. He escaped unscathed but his car was stranded.
• A later red flag was triggered when Fernando Alonso clipped the wall approaching Nouvelle Chicane, damaging his front wing and scattering debris. He limped back to the pits but running was effectively over.
• Ferrari looked strong from the start. Hamilton initially led on hards, but once the track evolved and mediums appeared, Antonelli briefly topped the times (1m14.537s) before the red flags.
• After the restart, Hamilton reclaimed the lead before Leclerc delivered a qualifying-style lap to go clear. The Monegasque had earlier locked up at Sainte Devote but recovered.
• Drivers struggled with the lively 2026 machinery on Monaco’s low-speed corners. Hamilton also locked up and took the escape road, while Norris survived a slide over the kerbs at the Swimming Pool.
• Liam Lawson faces potential scrutiny for exiting the pit lane under a red light late in the session, saying he saw it too late to stop.

What's next:

Teams will have limited time to fine-tune setups before second practice at 5pm local time (1am AEST). With qualifying on Saturday and Leclerc’s home crowd buzzing, Ferrari looks like the team to beat—but the narrow streets can quickly punish overconfidence.