The first hour of activity at the most glamorous GP of the year has concluded. Here’s a recap and the standings from FP1 that just took place in Monaco.
The Formula 1 cars are back on track, on one of the most iconic circuits of the championship. A quintessential street circuit that presents a challenge for both drivers and cars. The standings show results that are not very indicative, which we explore further in our recap of FP1 at the Monaco GP.
First half hour – FP1 Monaco
Track activity began immediately for everyone, as drivers started getting familiar with one of the most complex circuits of the season. Tight corners and close brushes with barriers make every minute on track crucial. The first to set a benchmark was Hamilton on yellow tyres in his SF-25. His time was quickly beaten by Nico Hulkenberg in the Sauber on C5s.
In the opening minutes, Leclerc collided with Stroll’s car at the hairpin. A huge error from the Canadian driver, who positioned himself in the racing line. The crash brought out the red flag to remove debris left by the front wing at the hairpin.
Activity resumed after a break of less than 10 minutes. Back on track, drivers continued to push to build confidence near the barriers. 20 minutes into the session, the two McLarens were setting the pace with Norris ahead of Piastri and Hamilton. Promising times for Norris, getting close to the 1:12 mark.
Charles Leclerc improved after the incident with Stroll and moved into third place, just over a tenth off. A solid benchmark from Hamilton, still on yellow tyres, brought him within four tenths of the McLaren pair. Meanwhile, Piastri slightly bettered the session’s benchmark, putting 5 thousandths between him and Lando Norris.
Moments later, Norris laid down a marker with a 1:12.290, over half a second ahead of Hamilton, who nonetheless dipped below the 1:13 mark. Leclerc also improved after more than 10 laps on the C6, getting closer to Norris but still not quite there.
Second half hour
Charles Leclerc significantly improved, getting to within two tenths of Norris on his tenth flying lap on C6s. Despite complaining about steering issues, Leclerc made a strong improvement, breaking the 1:12 barrier and stopping the clock at 1:11.964.
A solid reference from Carlos Sainz, who moved up to fourth place with the Williams, while Hamilton separated him from Albon in the standings. Piastri also improved, on yellow tyres, getting within 378 thousandths of Charles Leclerc.
It was a rather unusual session for the Red Bull duo, who mainly ran on hard tyres. Only in the final minutes did Verstappen switch to red tyres for a fast lap attempt, placing sixth behind the two Williams cars. He significantly improved his time on the second attempt, getting to within three tenths of Charles Leclerc—a result helped by both track evolution and an exceptional right foot.
In the final minutes before the chequered flag, Max Verstappen got even closer to Charles Leclerc but did not break the 1:12 barrier. The final moments were dedicated to race pace simulations, which are especially important this year to understand tyre degradation ahead of the mandatory two-stop strategy.
Leave a Reply