Ferrari send huge warning to rivals in Melbourne as Leclerc pulls clear in FP1

The opening FP1 of the 2026 season in Melbourne quickly turned chaotic, with several cars suffering technical issues within the first minutes of the session.

Oscar Piastri was the first to encounter trouble. The Australian reported a loss of power over the radio and initially looked set to stop on track, but ultimately managed to nurse his MCL40 back to the pits.

Lando Norris soon faced problems of his own, complaining that the downshifts felt “shocking”. The Briton was nevertheless able to return to the garage, with McLaren later confirming to GPblog that his car had been affected by a gearbox-related issue.

Rookie Arvid Lindblad also endured a difficult start to the session, with his car grinding to a halt in the pit lane before mechanics pushed it back to the garage.

Aston Martin’s problems were arguably even more severe. The Silverstone-based team confirmed that an issue on Fernando Alonso’s AMR26 had prevented the Spaniard from taking part in FP1 altogether, meaning the two-time world champion’s 2026 campaign effectively began on the back foot before he had even completed a single lap.

Alexander Albon also encountered technical trouble, which forced him to pull over and park his Williams with just under ten minutes remaining in the session.

As for the times, the session was marked by a constant back-and-forth between Red Bull and Ferrari, with Charles Leclerc and Max Verstappen trading the top spot for much of the running.

In the closing stages, however, Hamilton produced a late burst to set the fastest lap of the session with a 1:20.736 on soft tyres. With a final push, Leclerc reclaimed the top spot with a 1:20.267, nearly half a second clear of his teammate as Ferrari sealed a one-two in FP1.