Monegasque set 1:23.008 and surpassed Hamilton in a session marked by intense heat and a red flag; Gabriel Bortoleto placed Audi in the top 10, while Colton Herta stopped with a problem in the Cadillac.
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Charles Leclerc led the first free practice for the Italian GP, the 13th round of the 2026 Formula 1 season. On this Friday (4), in Monza, the Ferrari driver set 1:23.008 and led an Italian team one-two, with Lewis Hamilton in second. George Russell finished third, followed by Liam Lawson and Kimi Antonelli.
Gabriel Bortoleto managed to place Audi in eighth position after a session of gradual evolution and changes in car setup. Lando Norris was sixth, Arvid Lindblad finished seventh, while Franco Colapinto and Paul Aron completed the top 10.
The session
The first free practice for the Italian GP started under strong heat conditions in Monza. Even before the pit lane opened, the asphalt temperature had already reached 48°C, making the session important not only for the development of low downforce setups but also for evaluating tire behavior and wear.
Energy management also appeared as one of the points of attention on a circuit characterized by long straights, where battery depletion was expected in certain parts of the lap.
TL1 also featured four rookie drivers occupying regular drivers’ cars to fulfill regulatory obligations. Ayumu Iwasa took over Max Verstappen’s Red Bull, Luke Browning drove Alexander Albon’s Williams, Paul Aron occupied Pierre Gasly’s Alpine, and Colton Herta replaced Sergio Pérez in the Cadillac.
Iwasa was precisely the first to leave the pits, carrying equipment on the car for aerodynamic data collection. Shortly after, practically the entire field was on the circuit.
Most started work on hard tires, although some drivers used mediums. Lawson was one of the exceptions by going directly to softs.
Mercedes quickly placed its two cars among the leaders, but the lead changed several times as drivers found their rhythm. Leclerc took the lead with 1:24.482, while Piastri advanced to second with 1:25.333 before continuing to lower his time.
Tsunoda also appeared in third, while Lawson temporarily put Racing Bulls in the lead. Norris and Lindblad also appeared among the leaders during this track evolution phase.
Hamilton took first place with 1:24.291, but the sequence of fast laps continued. Norris set 1:24.194, Russell responded with 1:23.802, and Hamilton reached 1:23.891. Shortly after, Norris returned to the top with 1:23.719.
Audi starts behind, but Bortoleto improves
For Audi, the start confirmed some of the concerns the team had for Monza. The internal assessment was that the Italian circuit could represent one of the most difficult tracks of the season for the car, mainly due to the importance of the long straights.
Bortoleto initially did only a warm-up lap before returning to the garage. Hülkenberg, meanwhile, recorded 1:26.337 and appeared distant from Racing Bulls and Alpine, teams that were normally among Audi’s direct rivals.
When he effectively started his sequence of laps, Bortoleto set 1:26.307 and advanced from 20th to 13th position. Hülkenberg also improved, reaching 1:25.926.
Up front, Hamilton lowered to 1:23.891, Leclerc reached 1:24.023, and Colapinto appeared fifth with 1:24.028. Norris, however, maintained the reference with 1:23.719.
The session then had to be neutralized.
Herta’s problem causes red flag
Herta stopped with the Cadillac shortly before 7:50 and initially caused a Virtual Safety Car. Marshals tried to remove the car but could not move it, indicating that the single-seater was stuck due to some problem.
The race direction ended up showing the red flag to allow the Cadillac to be removed with the help of a rescue vehicle.
During the stoppage, Audi spoke with Bortoleto over the radio and decided that the Brazilian would do new fast laps with medium tires as soon as the track was released again.
The interruption ended a few minutes later, and several drivers returned immediately. Russell, Antonelli, Lawson, Norris, Colapinto, and Piastri appeared on soft tires, starting a new sequence of attacks on the clock.
Russell took the lead with 1:23.312, but Leclerc responded decisively. With 1:23.008, the Monegasque took first position and set the time that would remain the best of TL1.
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Bortoleto also improved a lot. The Brazilian lowered to 1:24.599 and temporarily entered the top 10. The internal comparison was positive: Hülkenberg had set 1:24.924, leaving Bortoleto 0.325 seconds ahead of his teammate at that moment.
Ferrari shows strength in Monza
The second half of the session had a greater presence of race simulations. Few drivers remained on hard tires, while mediums and softs began to dominate the programs.
One data point especially caught attention: Leclerc maintained approximately three tenths of an advantage over Russell even having set his best time on medium tires, while the Mercedes driver had used softs.
Hamilton also advanced. The Briton initially reached 1:23.561 and then found more time to register 1:23.181, taking second position and forming a Ferrari one-two.
Lawson also had a competitive session and set 1:23.433, placing himself among the leaders.
Bortoleto, meanwhile, returned to the garage. Over the radio, Audi agreed on changes to the car to try to provide more rotation in the chicanes, an important characteristic to attack Monza’s variants.
With about 15 minutes remaining, the leaders returned on medium tires and continued race pace work. The first reading of the longer stints indicated a tight battle between Ferrari, Mercedes, and McLaren.
Bortoleto places Audi eighth
Audi chose a different program for Bortoleto in the final stretch. The Brazilian was the first to return to the circuit on new soft tires, indicating a closer attempt at a qualifying simulation after the changes made to the car.
Bortoleto managed to improve and jumped to eighth position.
Despite the progress, the gap to the leaders still reinforced Audi’s concerns about competitiveness in Monza. At the same time, the absolute comparison needed to consider the different programs: most drivers did not use a new set of softs in the final minutes.
Aron also appeared in the top 10, while Bearman had an off-track excursion through the gravel in one of the chicanes, spreading dirt on the track without causing a new neutralization.
Unlike what usually happens in the final minutes of a TL1, there was no large sequence of qualifying simulations. Almost everyone was on track, but most continued working on race pace.
Not even the rookies had a widespread opportunity to seek times on new tires at the end.
Aron still managed to improve at the last moment, setting 1:24.177 and taking tenth position.
The checkered flag confirmed Leclerc as the fastest in TL1 with 1:23.008, almost two tenths ahead of Hamilton. Russell finished third, Lawson was fourth, and Antonelli completed the top five.
Norris was sixth, followed by Lindblad and Bortoleto, who was eighth. Colapinto finished ninth and Aron closed the top 10. Piastri appeared only in 11th.
Among the four rookies, Aron achieved the best result with tenth place. Browning finished 15th, Iwasa was 17th, and Herta was last after the problem that caused the red flag.
Before returning definitively to the garages, the drivers still took the opportunity to perform start practice.
Formula 1 returns to the track later this Friday, at 11 am (Brasília time, GMT -3), for the second free practice of the Italian GP, the 13th round of the 2026 season.
Check the result of TL1 of the 2026 Italian GP:
1) Charles Leclerc (Ferrari), 1:23.008s
2) Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari), 1:23.181
3) George Russell (Mercedes), 1:23.312
4) Liam Lawson (Red Bull Racing), 1:23.433
5) Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes), 1:23.644
6) Lando Norris (McLaren), 1:23.719
7) Arvid Lindblad (Racing Bulls), 1:23.802
8) Gabriel Bortoleto (Audi), 1:24.006
9) Franco Colapinto (Alpine), 1:24.028
10) Paul Aron (Alpine), 1:24.177
11) Oscar Piastri (McLaren), 1:24.184
12) Yuki Tsunoda (Racing Bulls), 1:24.571
13) Nico Hulkenberg (Audi), 1:24.626
14) Oliver Bearman (Haas F1 Team), 1:24.646
15) Luke Browning (Williams), 1:24.740
16) Carlos Sainz (Williams), 1:24.827
17) Ayumu Iwasa (Red Bull Racing), 1:24.873
18) Esteban Ocon (Haas F1 Team), 1:25.852
19) Valtteri Bottas (Cadillac), 1:25.984
20) Lance Stroll (Aston Martin), 1:26.066
21) Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin), 1:26.072
22) Colton Herta (Cadillac), 1:29.922
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