Leclerc tops FP1 as 2026 F1 era begins amid McLaren and Aston Martin issues
TL;DR Summary
Ferrari's Charles Leclerc topped FP1 in Melbourne for the 2026 F1 season with a 1m20.267s on softs, beating Hamilton and Verstappen as teams push to optimize the new machinery. McLaren suffered power-delivery and gearbox problems for Piastri and Norris, while Aston Martin's Alonso was sidelined by a Honda power-unit issue, making the session a rocky start for several front-runners.
- F1 Australian GP: Charles Leclerc leads first 2026 practice as McLaren and Aston Martin hit trouble Motorsport.com
- Australian Grand Prix: Oscar Piastri fastest from Kimi Antonelli and George Russell in Melbourne BBC
- F1 Australian GP LIVE: Race, Qualifying, Practice updates, results, stream, highlights from 2026 season-opener in Melbourne at Albert Park Sky Sports
- Australian Grand Prix: Leclerc fastest in first practice ahead of Hamilton, Verstappen ESPN
- ‘There are so many things to get to grips with’ – Piastri focused on learning from ‘pretty smooth’ FP2 Formula 1
Reading Insights
Total Reads
0
Unique Readers
7
Time Saved
16 min
vs 17 min read
Condensed
98%
3,316 → 59 words
Want the full story? Read the original article
Read on Motorsport.com