Leclerc leads Ferrari 1-2 in crash-hit Monaco FP1
Charles Leclerc set the pace in first practice for the Monaco Grand Prix, posting a 1:13.978 to give Ferrari a 1-2 in a crash-hit FP1. Leclerc’s time was 0.226 seconds quicker than teammate Lewis Hamilton, with Max Verstappen a further 0.513 seconds back in third. Championship leader Kimi Antonelli ran fourth and George Russell was fifth, with Lando Norris and Nico Hülkenberg also inside the top seven, providing an early read on the pecking order around the tight Monte Carlo street circuit. The session was interrupted twice by heavy incidents that curtailed running. Red Bull rookie Isack Hadjar lost control exiting the Swimming Pool chicane and struck the barriers nose-first, ripping off bodywork and prompting a red flag; Hadjar radioed that the car was “undrivable.” Fernando Alonso later clipped the wall at the Nouvelle/harbor chicane and shed part of his front wing, triggering another stoppage and a brief virtual safety car for debris. Leclerc himself locked up at Mirabeau and brushed the barriers, and several drivers ran into run-off areas as teams struggled with tyre degradation and the new-generation cars on Monaco’s slow-speed sections. Teams said they would analyse the curtailed running and use Free Practice 2 to refine setups and assess race-day potential, after many drivers switched to medium tyres in the closing stages. Stewards opened probes into multiple incidents, including an alleged impeding between Leclerc and Liam Lawson, a separate impeding allegation against Arvid Lindblad for blocking Oscar Piastri, and an inquiry into Lawson leaving the pit exit on a red light. Observers noted that Ferrari’s SF-26 and team setups appeared well suited to Monaco’s low-speed corners, but commentators stressed that track evolution and tyre choices could still change the competitive balance across the weekend.
