In the opening practice session for the Italian Grand Prix at Monza, Charles Leclerc emerged as the fastest driver, securing the top spot on the timing sheets, while his teammate Lewis Hamilton claimed second place, giving Ferrari a dominant one-two finish in the early running. The impressive performance came after Ferrari introduced a new engine upgrade, marking the first use of the second of the two upgrades they are allowed to employ during the season.
Leclerc posted a lap time of 1:23.008, a full 0.173 seconds ahead of Hamilton, who was the next quickest. Mercedes driver George Russell was another tenth of a second slower, rounding out the top three. The session also highlighted the situation of world championship contender Kimi Antonelli, who, despite being a rookie, found himself at the back of the grid for Sunday's race because his team exceeded the allotted number of power‑unit components for the year.
Antonelli nevertheless managed a respectable fifth‑place time for Mercedes, demonstrating that he can extract speed even when the car’s overall package is not fully optimized. Lando Norris of McLaren, who has enjoyed a resurgence by winning the previous two races and is keen to defend his title, finished sixth, just behind Antonelli.
In the current championship standings, Antonelli sits 59 points ahead of both Russell and Hamilton, while Norris trails the Italian by 83 points, occupying fourth place. These gaps underscore the importance of every practice session as teams fine‑tune their machinery for the high‑speed demands of Monza. Ferrari chose the iconic home race to roll out the second engine upgrade, a strategic move prompted by FIA data that indicated their power unit was lagging behind the outputs of Red Bull and Mercedes. Alongside the power‑unit enhancement, the Scuderia introduced a suite of chassis modifications specifically designed for the fast, low‑downforce layout of the Monza circuit.
The upgrades appeared to pay off immediately, as both Leclerc and Hamilton set their best laps on the medium‑compound tyres, which are generally slower than the soft compound. By contrast, Russell’s quickest lap came on the theoretically faster soft tyre, suggesting that Mercedes may have hidden performance potential that was not fully displayed in the limited practice window. The session also featured a notable performance from Red Bull’s Liam Lawson, who secured fourth place while driving for a Red Bull entry that did not include any of the team’s official 2026 drivers.
Lawson was substituting for Isack Hadjar, who missed the weekend after sustaining a wrist injury during the summer break. Max Verstappen, the reigning champion, also participated in the session, allowing several rookies to take valuable seat time. Ayumu Iwasa finished 17th in Verstappen’s Red Bull, and Paul Aron delivered the best rookie result, finishing 10th for Alpine.
Technical hiccups affected other drivers as well. Colton Herta’s opportunity to represent Cadillac was cut short by a mechanical failure, while British driver Luke Browning placed 15th for Williams.
These varied outcomes illustrate the unpredictable nature of practice, where teams balance the need for outright speed against the necessity of preserving the car for the race weekend. The broader event schedule for the weekend is packed with action across multiple categories. On Friday, the day begins with the Formula 3 qualifying session at 12:55 pm, followed by Formula 2 qualifying at 1:50 pm, and then the first practice for the Italian Grand Prix at 2:35 pm.
The afternoon continues with the start of the second practice session at 3:00 pm, leading into the F1 Show at 4:15 pm and the Team Bosses’ press conference at 5:20 pm. Saturday’s itinerary includes the Formula 3 sprint race at 8:25 am, the third practice session for the Grand Prix at 11:15 am, the Formula 2 sprint at 1:10 pm, and the build‑up to the Grand Prix qualifying at 2:15 pm, with the official qualifying taking place at 3:00 pm, followed by a special segment of Ted’s Qualifying Notebook at 5:00 pm. Sunday culminates with the Formula 3 feature race at 7:10 am, the Formula 2 feature race at 8:40 am, the Porsche Supercup race at 10:40 am, and the main event – the Italian Grand Prix – starting at 2:00 pm, with post‑race analysis and reaction at 4:00 pm, and concluding with Ted’s Notebook at 5:00 pm. The qualifying session is also broadcast on Sky Sports Main Event.
Fans can watch the entire weekend live on Sky Sports F1, with streaming available through the NOW platform, which offers a contract‑free option that can be cancelled at any time. The combination of Ferrari’s home‑track advantage, the newly introduced engine and chassis upgrades, and the competitive field of drivers across the support categories promises an exciting and unpredictable race weekend at Monza.