FP1: Hamilton heads Ferrari 1-2 in opening practice session for Italian Grand Prix

Lewis Hamilton topped Free Practice 1 for the Italian Grand Prix, leading a Ferrari 1-2 from team mate Charles Leclerc as the session was briefly interrupted by a red flag.

The Briton, who will suffer a five-place grid penalty this weekend for an installation lap indiscretion last weekend in Zandvoort, posted a 1m 20.117s in the final five minutes on the soft Pirelli rubber, which thrilled the Tifosi and left him 0.169s clear of Leclerc.

The opening one-hour session took place under bright blue skies, with some different names on the timing screens as Alex Dunne and Paul Aron were behind the wheel of Oscar Piastri's McLaren and Franco Colapinto's Alpine respectively.

Both had already made appearances this season, Dunne with McLaren at the Red Bull Ring and Aron for Kick Sauber at Silverstone and Hungaroring, with all full-time drivers required to make way for a rookie – viewed as someone who has started no more than two Grands Prix – in two practice sessions across the 2025 season.

Lando Norris became the first driver to take to the run-off at the opening corner, the McLaren man rejoining unharmed and keen to hit the ground running after losing a big haul of points last weekend in the Dutch GP.

Both Leclerc and Nico Hulkenberg also took to the run-off area at the opening chicane as drivers struggled with a tailwind into the heavy braking zone and on a green Monza Circuit.

Norris became the first driver to set a sub 1m 22s time – a 1m 21.513s – before Alex Albon lowered the benchmark down to a 1m 21.479s inside the opening 10 minutes.

Max Verstappen launched himself to the top with the Pirelli medium tyre, posting a 1m 21.166s, with the Red Bull driver reporting over the radio that his "tyres are starting to slide a little bit more", as Albon continued his impressive run on the hard rubber, posting a 1m 21.073s.

As the track conditions continued to improve, so did the lap times, Verstappen setting a 1m 20.751s on the same set of medium tyres, as Aron suffered a spin into the second chicane having touched the grass on entry before rejoining at the 20-minute mark.

Dunne became the first driver to bolt on a set of soft tyres, posting a time only good enough for P15 at the halfway point, while Verstappen's first run on the red-wall tyre lowered the benchmark by less than one-tenth but reporting of "no grip, I just slide a lot".

Isack Hadjar suffered a high-speed off through Ascari before rejoining, spewing gravel across the circuit which necessitated a brief red flag after 25 minutes to clear, the deployment of which caused problems for Leclerc.

The Ferrari driver was on a flying lap and overtook a Kick Sauber approaching the second chicane just as the red flags were displayed, with the incident initially noted by the stewards before no further action was taken.

The 2024 Italian GP winner then moved to the top of the times as running resumed, posting a 1m 20.286s as team mate Hamilton made it a Ferrari 1-2 by registering a 1m 20.117s in the final five minutes, which would remain the best of the session.

Best of the rest was Carlos Sainz's Williams from Verstappen and the Mercedes of Kimi Antonelli, with title challenger Norris only able to finish sixth and nearly one second off the leading pace, followed by Albon.

George Russell was eighth but the Briton's session came to an early end after his Mercedes stopped out on track in the final minute, bringing out the Virtual Safety Car. The top 10 was completed by Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin) and Hadjar (Racing Bulls).

Gabriel Bortoleto led Kick Sauber team mate Hulkenberg, the second Racing Bulls of Liam Lawson and Yuki Tsunoda (Red Bull).

Lance Stroll (Aston Martin) headed Dunne, Haas' Esteban Ocon, Pierre Gasly's Alpine, Bearman (Haas) and Aron, who completed the order and was two seconds away from Hamilton.