Leclerc leads opening Hungarian Grand Prix practice as Stroll crash brings out red flag

Charles Leclerc topped the timesheets in the opening hour of running at the Hungarian Grand Prix, setting the pace with a 1:19.705 as teams began evaluating a host of upgrades around the Hungaroring.

Isack Hadjar continues to grow in confidence and is only one place behind former World Champion Max Verstappen in the standing | Credit: Formula 1

With ambient temperatures sitting at 23°C and track temperatures climbing above 45°C, conditions were ideal for the first representative running of the weekend. All teams had the C3, C4 and C5 Pirelli compounds available, with the majority of the session completed on the medium tyre before qualifying simulations on the softs.

Several teams also fulfilled Formula One's mandatory rookie driver requirement during Free Practice 1. Championship leader Kimi Antonelli handed his Mercedes over to Frederik Vesti, while Oscar Piastri was replaced at McLaren by Formula 2 leader Leonardo Fornaroli. Colton Herta stepped into the Cadillac in place of Valtteri Bottas, Paul Aron drove Franco Colapinto's Alpine, and Ryo Hirakawa took over Oliver Bearman's Haas.

As the session got underway, Nico Hülkenberg, Esteban Ocon, Isack Hadjar and Sergio Pérez were among the first drivers to head out. Leclerc quickly established the early benchmark, setting purple sectors throughout his opening flying lap before George Russell briefly moved ahead with a 1:22.056.

The opening stages saw the lead change hands several times as the circuit evolved. Leclerc reclaimed top spot before Max Verstappen produced a 1:20.788 to edge ahead of the Ferrari. Lando Norris settled into the top five despite reporting difficulties with McLaren's new rear wing package, while Lewis Hamilton steadily climbed the order after recording purple opening sectors.

Verstappen was far from comfortable despite his pace, voicing frustration over traffic involving Carlos Sainz before later complaining that his RB22 felt "jumpy" through the gearbox. Hülkenberg also endured an interrupted start to the session after returning to the garage with an undisclosed issue following his out lap.

Around the halfway mark, Leclerc produced another impressive lap, setting purple sectors in all three splits to lower the benchmark to 1:20.287, while Fornaroli impressed by climbing into fourth with a 1:21.890. The Italian continued to show strong pace throughout the session, spending much of the hour inside the top 10 as McLaren evaluated its updated rear wing.

Hamilton moved into second before teams switched attention towards qualifying simulations.

Fernando Alonso and Lance Stroll were among the few drivers running the hard compound, while the majority of the field remained on mediums. Alonso's running was briefly interrupted as Aston Martin investigated an issue around the rear suspension. Elsewhere, Sergio Pérez and Colton Herta also completed laps on the hard tyre for their respective teams.

Russell was the first of the frontrunners to complete a representative soft tyre lap, producing a 1:20.066 to briefly move to the top of the standings. His advantage lasted only moments before Verstappen responded with a 1:19.559, the first lap of the weekend below the 1:20 barrier.

Leclerc answered immediately. Setting purple sectors through the opening two splits, the Ferrari driver overcame a difficult final sector caused by tyre temperature and rear-end movement to stop the clock at 1:19.705, reclaiming first position with what proved to be the quickest lap of the session.

Further down the order, Hadjar continued an impressive afternoon by climbing to third, while Gabriel Bortoleto, Liam Lawson and Arvid Lindblad all featured inside the top 10 during the qualifying simulations.

The session was interrupted with just over 15 minutes remaining after Stroll spun heavily on the exit of Turn 2 before coming to rest near Turn 3, bringing out the red flag. Aston Martin later suspected a failure on the left-rear suspension had contributed to the incident. Stroll emerged from the car unharmed.

Running resumed with less than 10 minutes remaining, allowing several drivers to complete one final flying lap. Vesti produced an encouraging improvement to move into seventh, while Alonso returned to 13th after his earlier suspension issue. Sainz's afternoon continued to unravel following an earlier radio wiring problem, before a lock-up forced him off the circuit and left the Williams driver at the foot of the order.

Leclerc's session ended prematurely after the Ferrari developed a mechanical issue in the closing stages, forcing the Monegasque driver to crawl back to the pit lane where the SF-26 required pushing into the garage. Verstappen also reported an anti-stall concern during the final minutes but was still able to finish second.

Leclerc ultimately ended Free Practice 1 on top ahead of Verstappen, with Hamilton completing the top three. Russell finished fourth, while Hadjar rounded out the top five after an encouraging opening session for Racing Bulls.

Top 10 – Free Practice 1

1. Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) – 1:19.705

2. Max Verstappen (Red Bull)

3. Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari)

4. Isack Hadjar (Racing Bulls)

5. George Russell (Mercedes)

6. Gabriel Bortoleto (Sauber)

7. Frederik Vesti (Mercedes)

8. Nico Hülkenberg (Sauber)

9. Arvid Lindblad (Racing Bulls)

10. Liam Lawson (Racing Bulls)