Seven-time Formula 1 Champion Lewis Hamilton topped the first practice for the 2025 Italian Grand Prix, as Charles Leclerc was second fastest in the sister car.
Whether the laps times Hamilton and Leclerc posted in FP1 where glory runs or genuine pace is yet to be seen, but we will soon find out as the weekend progresses further.
Nevertheless, Hamilton delivered a best lap time of 1:20.117 to go fastest, 0.169s clear of Leclerc while Carlos Sainz was third fastest in the Williams, 0.533s off the pace.
Less than a tenth behind Sainz came Max Verstappen in fourth with Kimi Antonelli finishing fifth fastest, 0.248s behind the Dutchman.
It wasn't a good session for McLaren as Lando Norris was sixth fastest but 0.904s off the pace as his MCL39 seemed to understeer quite a bit, the Briton going through the gravel a few times as he couldn't make his car turn.
Alex Albon was seventh fastest in the Williams whole George Russell - who broke down in the end of the session - was eighth in the other Mercedes.
Fernando Alonso and Isack Hadjar were ninth and tenth respectively.
Alex Dunne, who replaced Oscar Piastri in the McLaren was down in 16th place while Paul Aron who replaced Franco Colapinto at Alpine was 20th.
Buildup towards FP1
Formula 1 arrives at Monza, the temple of speed, and as usual we have a lot to look forwards to based on what we have seen at the Dutch Grand Prix last weekend.
Norris will be in the spotlight after his DNF in Zandvoort which out him on the back foot in his Championship fight with Piastri who now leads him by 34 points.
Ferrari also have a challenge to deliver a decent performance in front of their Tifosi after their dismal weekend in the Netherlands with a double DNF not to mention the struggling Hamilton who really needs a strong showing in front of the Italian fans especially as he will serve a five-place grid penalty he picked up on Zandvoort for not slowing under double Yellows.
This weekend will be Antonelli's second home race, and the Mercedes rookie will have to focus this time, something he did not manage to do at Imola earlier this season, so it will interesting to see how Mercedes manage their teenager and shield him from distractions.
In terms of tyres, Pirelli - for what is their 500th grand prix - have brought the softer range of their tyres: The C3 (Hard), the C4 (Medium), and the C5 (Soft).
In terms of car upgrades, McLaren have a revised front suspension with a new front wing and full rear wing elements brought as a specific requirement for the low downforce nature of Monza.
Ferrari, in addition to their special livers celebrating Niki Lauda's championship-winning 312T, had revised front and rear wings also specific for Monza while Red Bull Racing, in addition to the track specific stuff, have brought a new floor with new body, fences, and edge.
Mercedes brought revised front and rear wings as well as new floor fences for their W16. Aston Martin brought a track-specific rear wing.
Haas have a new front wing while Racing Bulls have a track-specific rear wing in addition to a new coke/engine cover, new floor body and less draggy mirrors. Williams have new front and rear wings.
In terms of drivers, Dunne replaced Piastri for FP1 his second with McLaren after Austria. Aron replaced Colapinto at Alpine.
FP1 Session Highlights
The session started in clear dry conditions with track temperature registering a toast 42 degrees while air temperature was 25 degrees.
The session started with a Virtual Safety Car (VSC) simulation and the drivers did now wasted any time setting out on track.
Dunne soon asked for the head rests on the McLaren he was driving - Piastri's car - as soon as he came out on track.
Soon, Norris messed up the first chicane and went straight after realizing he would not be able to make the corner. Nico Hulkenberg soon did the same, lost the rear with tail wind and went straight.
Soon Hamilton made his debut on track for the first time in Monza as a Scuderia driver.
Pierre Gasly came upon Sainz who was driving slowly around while the Frenchman was on a push lap and was naturally unhappy with the Spaniard.
Soon Verstappen reported his Medium tyres have started to slide a "little bit more", 15 minutes into the session.
20 minutes into the session, Aron brought out the Yellow flag after spinning at the second chicane. He managed to keep his Alpine going and returned to the track.
Gabriel Bortoleto then complained that Williams dropped something in their pit box which meant he and to move to avoid it consequently not managing to hit his marks properly.
Soon, halfway into the session, the drivers switched to the Soft tyres and then Norris had a couple of moments at Lesmos 1 and 2, dipping wheel in the gravel. He aborted his lap.
But then the Briton ran wide at Lesmo 1, his McLaren clearly suffering from understeer. Antonelli also dipped a wheel in the gravel at Lesmo 1.
Verstappen on the other hand reported: "No grip, I just slide a lot." That was as soon as he set out on track on the Softs.
With 24 minutes remaining, the session was Red flagged to clear gravel from the track. That was caused by Hadjar who took a trip through the gravel at the Ascari Chicane. Hadjar's floor was also damaged as a result.
Leclerc was noted for a Red Flag infringement as it appeared he overtook another car when the Red Flag came out.
"That was a tricky situation. I don't know what to do," he told the pitwall. "I broke as hard as possible when I saw the red flag, but it wasn't enough to stay behind the Sauber."
It appears the stewards were satisfied with Leclerc's explanation and he was cleared as the session was resumed with a little under 20 minutes remaining.
Soon Dunne and Oliver Bearman had a moment out on track, a close one. The Irishman radioed: "Bearman impeded me."
Then Alonso went through the gravel at the Ascari Chicane. Russell missed the corner at Turn 4 and went straight. The Mercedes driver did not rejoin the track properly and was shown a black and white flag.
Bearman had the same mistake as Russell, but joined properly.
With less than one minute remaining, the VSC was out as Russell pulled to the side of the track reporting that he had lost power.
The session was concluded with practice starts.
Italian GP FP1 Classification
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