Charles Leclerc made an encouraging start to his home Monaco Grand Prix weekend by setting the fastest time in a disrupted first free practice session, leading a Ferrari one-two ahead of teammate Lewis Hamilton.
The Monegasque driver thrilled local fans around the streets of Monte-Carlo, posting the quickest lap of the session with Hamilton close behind as Ferrari immediately showed strong pace on a circuit expected to suit the characteristics of the SF26.
World champion Max Verstappen completed the top three, while Mercedes pair Kimi Antonelli and George Russell rounded out the top five. Defending Monaco winner Lando Norris finished sixth after focusing on longer runs during the session.
Practice was interrupted several times by incidents typical of Monaco’s unforgiving street circuit, with drivers frequently brushing barriers and bringing out yellow flags. The stoppages prevented many teams from completing their planned programmes, turning the opening hour into a challenging exercise in adapting to rapidly changing track conditions.
Despite the interruptions, Ferrari emerged as the early benchmark, with both Leclerc and Hamilton appearing comfortable around the tight and technical layout. The result will boost confidence within the Scuderia as Leclerc looks to challenge for another strong result in front of his home crowd.
While Friday practice offers only an early indication of form, Ferrari’s performance suggested the Italian team could be among the leading contenders heading into qualifying, traditionally the most important session of the Monaco Grand Prix weekend.