Charles Leclerc set the early pace as Formula One’s new era began with a chaotic first practice session at Albert Park on Friday, the Ferrari driver leading a one-two for the Scuderia while several teams wrestled with reliability problems.
Leclerc lapped the Melbourne circuit in 1 minute, 20.267 seconds on soft tyres, almost half a second quicker than teammate Lewis Hamilton. The seven-time world champion, beginning his second season in red, completed the encouraging start for Ferrari as the Italian team laid down an early marker for the season-opening weekend.
Max Verstappen was third fastest for Red Bull, 0.522 seconds off the pace, with new teammate Isack Hadjar fourth. The four-time world champion was among the drivers able to complete clean early runs as teams navigated the complexities of F1’s new hybrid power units.
The opening session of the 2026 campaign, however, was marked by a string of technical problems across the field.
Constructors’ champions McLaren endured a difficult start, with defending world champion Lando Norris complaining his downshifts were “shocking” on his first lap. The Briton managed only the 19th fastest time before cutting his session short with a suspected gearbox issue.
Home favourite Oscar Piastri was sixth fastest but also encountered trouble, reporting a throttle problem on his first lap before continuing.
The session was interrupted less than four minutes in when Racing Bulls rookie Arvid Lindblad triggered a safety car after stopping in the pit lane and requiring assistance from mechanics. The 18-year-old recovered to set the fifth fastest time once running resumed.
Further disruption followed when Williams driver Alex Albon lost power and stopped on track, bringing out a virtual safety car late in the session.
The new power units, which feature a significantly larger share of electrical power than the previous generation, have presented teams with a steep learning curve as drivers adapt to managing energy deployment and regeneration.
Nowhere were the difficulties clearer than at Aston Martin. Fernando Alonso was unable to leave the garage because of a suspected power-unit issue, while teammate Lance Stroll completed just three laps and finished more than 30 seconds adrift of Leclerc’s benchmark time.
Mercedes, widely tipped as contenders after strong winter testing, were more measured in their approach. George Russell was seventh fastest, one place ahead of rookie Kimi Antonelli.
Audi, formerly Sauber, also made a solid start with Gabriel Bortoleto and Nico Hulkenberg ninth and 10th respectively.
Elsewhere, new entrants Cadillac experienced a modest debut session. Valtteri Bottas completed 24 laps to finish 17th, while teammate Sergio Perez was slowest.
Bottas, however, had reason to celebrate before the weekend truly begins. A recent change to F1’s sporting regulations means a five-place grid penalty he had carried over from 2024 has now expired.
“You know my five-place grid penalty? It’s gone,” the Finn wrote on Instagram. “Happy days.”
