Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton lead the way in FP1 at Monaco Grand Prix

Hometown hero Charles Leclerc led the way during the first practice session at the Formula 1 Monaco Grand Prix, with his Ferrari teammate Lewis Hamilton finishing behind him in P2.

Over the previous weeks, many have looked at Ferrari as the prohibitive favorites for F1’s marquee event. Despite Mercedes’ dominance so far this season, the high-downforce configuration in Monaco plays to Ferrari’s strengths. In addition, the lack of long straights could neutralize one of Mercedes’ strengths this season, which is the W17’s power over those sections of track.

Leclerc, who finally broke through with a win in his home race during the 2024 season after years of heartbreak in Monaco, topped the field with a lap time of 1:13.978, posted on the C4 medium tire. Hamilton was 0.226 seconds behind, also posted on the medium tire.

Max Verstappen finished third, more than a half-second off the pace.

The Mercedes pair of Kimi Antonelli and George Russell rounded out the top five, with Antonelli in fourth and Russell fifth. Of note, however, is the fact that Antonelli posted his time on the C3 hard tire. Lando Norris, who won this race a season ago, finished sixth with a lap on the hard tire.

The biggest surprise? The pace showed by the Audi pair of Nico Hülkenberg and Gabriel Bortoleto. Hülkenberg finished in seventh, while Bortoleto finished in ninth.

All 11 teams will now reset for the second practice hour later today.