2026 F1 Round 13 Italian Grand Prix FP1: Leclerc tops Monza on new-engine debut as Ferrari take a home one-two

On September 4, Ferrari swept the top two spots in the first free practice session of the Italian Grand Prix. Leclerc set a 1:23.008 on medium tyres, Hamilton was 0.173 seconds behind, and Russell finished third.

Tire and upgrade plans

Ferrari introduced an upgraded power unit at Monza. Leclerc said on Thursday that the new version would bring more power, though the exact gain still needed to be assessed; he hopes it will help close the gap and earn a third Monza victory after wins in 2019 and 2024.

Russell used soft tyres for his run and ended the session 0.304 seconds adrift. Lawson, continuing to substitute for Hadjar in the Red Bull, was fourth, with Antonelli fifth, 0.425 seconds and 0.636 seconds off respectively.

H-Wing and rookie outings

Norris was sixth and Piastri 11th. McLaren used an H-Wing rotating rear-wing concept at Monza; the team had already tested the rotating design in FP1 in Hungary, and this time brought a specification suited to a low-drag circuit.

Four rookies took part in the session: Aron replaced Gasly in the Alpine and finished 10th; Browning replaced Albon in the Williams and finished 15th; Ayumu Iwasa replaced Verstappen in the Red Bull and finished 17th; and Herta replaced Perez in the Cadillac and finished 22nd.

Herta completed only five laps before stopping on team orders due to a suspected hydraulic issue. Race control first deployed the virtual safety car, then showed the red flag to clear the car; when the session resumed, a little more than half the allotted time remained.

Full FP1 classification