Charles Leclerc gave Ferrari exactly what it craved on a scorching Friday at Monza: a red car on top of the timesheets and a statement lap to light up the Tifosi’s hopes.
The Monegasque set the pace in first practice for the Italian Grand Prix, edging Lewis Hamilton by 0.173 seconds to underline Ferrari’s intent at its home race. George Russell backed up Mercedes’ strong start in third, but the early story belonged to the scarlet car and the driver who has so often carried its expectations.
Leclerc’s benchmark arrived in brutal heat, the track baking as teams tiptoed through their first proper read of the weekend. Ferrari, under pressure to deliver something special on home soil, looked sharp from the outset. The SF-24 ran cleanly, and when Leclerc pushed, the stopwatch responded.
Hamilton, a seven-time world champion and still very much in the title hunt, kept him honest. His lap, just under two-tenths shy, hinted that Mercedes will not let Ferrari have this one without a fight. Russell, a further step back in third, completed a quietly efficient opening for the Brackley team.
Behind them, Liam Lawson stole a slice of the limelight. Standing in again at Red Bull for the injured Isack Hadjar, the New Zealander hustled his car to fourth fastest, an assured performance that put him ahead of the man everyone is chasing in the standings.
Kimi Antonelli
Kimi Antonelli, the Italian championship leader carrying the weight of home expectation and a 59-point cushion over Hamilton and Russell, had a more subdued session. He finished 0.636 seconds off Leclerc’s best in the other Mercedes, his run more about data-gathering than fireworks as the team juggled long-game priorities with immediate pace.
The heat finally bit back midway through the session. Rookie Colton Herta, deputising at Cadillac for regular driver Sergio Perez, ground to a halt out on track with a hydraulic issue. The stoppage triggered red flags, broke the rhythm and forced teams into a reshuffle of run plans as the marshals cleared the stricken car.
When the circuit fell quiet, the numbers told a clear story. Ferrari has a car that works around Monza’s long straights and heavy braking zones. Mercedes has both drivers in the mix. Red Bull’s stand-in looks comfortable. And the championship leader has work to do.
Antonelli’s task is complicated by more than just raw pace. He will start Sunday’s race from the back after taking a new power unit, a strategic hit that opens the door for Ferrari to attack and for Mercedes to claw back ground in the title race. For an Italian leading the championship, condemned to a rear-of-grid start at Monza, the narrative writes itself: damage limitation on paper, but an invitation to produce something memorable.
Ferrari, sensing opportunity, knows this weekend might be one of its best chances to strike. Leclerc has already put the red car on top once. The question now is whether he can turn a promising Friday into the kind of Monza Sunday that lives long in Ferrari folklore.
