FP1: Leclerc sets the pace ahead of Hamilton and Verstappen during disrupted first practice in Monaco

Charles Leclerc has topped the timesheets during the opening practice session of the Monaco Grand Prix weekend, the Ferrari driver setting the pace in an hour that was twice disrupted by red flags.

With the iconic Monte Carlo kicking off the European leg of the season, much of the field appeared keen to get going as a queue formed in the pit lane prior to the local start time of 1330. Cadillac’s Sergio Perez – a Monaco winner back in 2022 – headed the pack for the initial laps of the circuit, with all of the cars sporting the hard tyre.

Home favourite Leclerc was also out on track early, days on from the announcement that he has signed a new multi-year deal with Ferrari. But the session did not get off to the smoothest start for the Monegasque, who suffered a lock-up and went straight on at Mirabeau as a result before reversing and continuing his lap.

There were also complaints from the Racing Bulls pair of Arvid Lindblad and Liam Lawson, both having reported a lack of steering around the hairpin. Meanwhile, once most of the grid had set a timed lap, Lewis Hamilton had set the early pace on a 1m 15.617s, just under three tenths clear of Max Verstappen while the other Red Bull of Isack Hadjar slotted into third.

Hadjar was subsequently displaced by Lando Norris, the Briton – who took his first Monaco victory at last year’s event – looking for a good outing on the weekend of McLaren’s 1000th race in Formula 1.

Over at Haas, there looked to be a moment of tension between Esteban Ocon and Ollie Bearman, with the former seemingly feeling that his team mate had backed up too much while Bearman also complained about Ocon’s actions.

On the timesheets, Leclerc had climbed to the top on a 1m 14.928s, a sizeable 0.508s clear of championship leader Kimi Antonelli – but Hamilton was still looking quick and soon moved ahead of Antonelli, the seven-time World Champion having won at Monaco on three occasions in the past.

Moments later there was a lock-up for Hamilton that saw him run off the track at Sainte Devote, the Briton subsequently returning to the pits. Meanwhile the likes of Antonelli and George Russell – sitting in third and ninth respectively – had switched to the medium tyres as the session reached its halfway point.

As the McLarens and others started to follow suit by bolting on the C4 compound – and Antonelli moved up to the P1 slot – Norris pulled off a good save after a bit of a moment on his lap. Hadjar, however, was not so lucky as the Frenchman hit the barriers at the Swimming Pool chicane, bringing out the red flags.

Fortunately the Red Bull racer reported that he was okay before making his way back to the team garage, while the marshals worked to clear the stricken RB22. Following a short stoppage, the action resumed with just over 15 minutes left on the clock.

Most of the pack had now switched to the medium tyres for the final segment of the session, while Verstappen issue a complaint over the radio, asking the team to “fix this release”. Hamilton returned to the top spot on a 1m 14.204s – before team mate Leclerc became the first to dip into the 1m 13s, going fastest with his effort of 1m 13. 978s.

It was subsequently confirmed that an impeding incident between Leclerc and Lawson will be investigated after the session – and the trouble did not end there for Lawson, who radioed in to report that he had touched the wall in the Racing Bulls machine. Lawson’s team mate Lindblad would also be investigated post-session after seemingly impeding Piastri.

With just a few minutes remaining, the red flags were thrown again due to some debris on track from Fernando Alonso’s front wing, the Aston Martin driver having clipped the barriers coming out of the tunnel.

The drivers returned to the circuit for the dying moments when the session resumed, but Leclerc remained in P1 on his earlier effort with a margin of 0.226s from team mate Hamilton. Verstappen placed in third, with the Mercedes pair of Antonelli and Russell in fourth and fifth respectively while Norris followed in sixth place.

Audi’s Nico Hulkenberg and Gabriel Bortoleto had a decent showing in seventh and ninth – the McLaren of Piastri slotting in-between them in eighth – and the Alpine of Pierre Gasly completed the top 10. Williams’ Alex Albon and Carlos Sainz were 11th and 12th, ahead of Hadjar, Perez and the other Alpine of Franco Colapinto.

The Haas cars of Bearman and Ocon claimed 16th and 17th, followed by the Lindblad and team mate Lawson – with the latter set to face another investigation for leaving the pit exit on a red light. Alonso, Cadillac’s Valtteri Bottas and the Aston Martin of Lance Stroll rounded out the classification.

The drivers and teams will now have the opportunity to reconvene and examine their data before Free Practice 2 takes place at 1700 local time.