Monaco Grand Prix | Lewis Hamilton dominates free practice

(Monte-Carlo) Briton Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes) set the best time in the first free practice session for the Monaco Grand Prix on Friday, 8^e round of the Formula 1 World Championship.

The seven-time world champion dominated Australian Oscar Piastri (McLaren) and his teammate and compatriot at Mercedes, George Russell, 3^e.

The Briton Lando Norris took 4^e time at the wheel of the second McLaren on the grid repainted in the colors of the Brazilian flag in homage to the legend Ayrton Senna, who died 30 years ago on the Imola circuit in Italy.

Senna remains to this day the driver with the most victories in Monaco, six including five with McLaren (between 1989 and 1993).

Monegasque Charles Leclerc completed the top 5 of this one-hour session. At the wheel of his Ferrari, he hopes to achieve his first success in F1 on Sunday on home soil, which has eluded him since his debut in the elite in 2018.

The other Ferrari, that of the Spaniard Carlos Sainz, finished 10^e.

The three-time reigning world champion, the Dutchman Max Verstappen, was only 11^e on the timesheet at the end of these first tests, ahead of his teammate, the Mexican Sergio Pérez.

Unlike several of their competitors, however, the two Red Bull drivers did not drive on soft tires, settling for slower medium tires to set their best time.

On Thursday, Verstappen nevertheless warned that Monaco was “one of the most difficult tracks” for Red Bull. “Monaco is never very simple, even when you are supposed to have the best car, it is a very delicate circuit for everything to work as it should,” he explained.

These first tests were marked by a single red flag waved at the end of the session, when the Chinese Zhou Guanyu (Sauber) hit the barriers around the circuit, spreading debris on the track. Time to clean the route, the session was able to resume for the remaining ten minutes.

A second free practice session is scheduled for Friday afternoon from 5 p.m. local time. The third and final session will take place on Saturday at 12:30 p.m. before qualifying scheduled for 4 p.m.

In Monaco, Verstappen will aim for a ninth leading position on Saturday at the end of qualifying, synonymous with an absolute record. If he succeeds, the reigning champion would erase a 35-year-old record, which he has co-held since the Emilia-Romagna GP last week with Ayrton Senna.