Charles Leclerc gave Ferrari’s home crowd an early reason to dream as the Monegasque led a Scuderia one-two in opening practice for the Italian Grand Prix at Monza.
Leclerc clocked a 1m23.008s on medium tyres midway through the session, edging team-mate Lewis Hamilton by 0.173s and putting Ferrari immediately at the head of the field on a sweltering Friday afternoon.
The result was an encouraging first glimpse of what the Scuderia’s latest upgrades can deliver at its home circuit, although Mercedes and McLaren will have plenty of opportunity to respond as the weekend unfolds.
Ferrari arrived at Monza with a throwback livery celebrating Michael Schumacher’s first season with the team in 1996, but it was Leclerc who provided the biggest dose of nostalgia for the partisan crowd.
The Scuderia has also brought a significant package of technical developments, including a revised low-drag rear wing and its second permitted power-unit upgrade of the season, designed to reduce the deficit to Mercedes.
Reigning world champion Lando Norris initially set the pace before the session was interrupted by Cadillac’s Colton Herta, who was ordered to park his car after suffering a hydraulic problem.
The red flag delayed the action, with the session eventually restarting with 34 minutes remaining. George Russell then briefly moved ahead of Norris before Leclerc produced the benchmark lap.
Hamilton stayed within striking distance, while Russell reclaimed third with a 1m23.312s on soft tyres, 0.304s away from Leclerc.
Liam Lawson put Red Bull fourth, ahead of championship leader Kimi Antonelli, who has little interest in chasing outright pace this weekend after taking a back-of-the-grid penalty for a full power-unit change.
Norris finished sixth ahead of Racing Bulls rookie Arvid Lindblad and Audi’s Gabriel Bortoleto, while Alpine’s Franco Colapinto and Paul Aron completed the top 10. Oscar Piastri could only manage 11th in the second McLaren.
Four drivers were making rookie FP1 appearances, with Herta joined by Aron, Red Bull’s Ayumu Iwasa and Williams youngster Luke Browning as teams completed one of their mandatory rookie runs.
All of this unfolded under oppressive conditions, with track temperatures exceeding the FIA’s 31-degree threshold for a declared heat hazard. Drivers therefore had to choose between wearing cooling vests or adding ballast to their cars.
Ferrari may have enjoyed the opening salvo, but with the heat intensifying and the energy-management demands of Monza still to come, the real battle is only beginning.
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