Charles Leclerc made local knowledge pay on Friday when he topped the times for Ferrari in opening practice for his home Monaco Formula One Grand Prix ahead of team-mate seven-time champion Lewis Hamilton. The two Ferraris were half a second faster than third-placed four-time champion Max Verstappen of Red Bull ahead of the Mercedes duo of championship leading Italian teenager Kimi Antonelli and George Russell. World champion Lando Norris was sixth for McLaren, without troubling the leading pace-setters, ahead of Audi’s Nico Hulkenberg, Oscar Piastri in the second McLaren –- on a weekend when the team is celebrating its 1000th Grand Prix — and Gabriel Bortoleto in the second Audi. 

Pierre Gasly was 10th for Alpine in an interesting session interrupted by two red flags as the drivers familiarised themselves with the singular challenges of driving F1’s new hybrid era cars on the classic barrier-lined Mediterranean street circuit.

It was a near-perfect start to the weekend for Ferrari and Leclerc, who became only the second Monegasque to win his home event when he triumphed in 2024, justifying expectations  this time that they were favourites to break a long winless run since Mexico two years ago.