Practice report
Formula 1 Hungarian GP
F1 Hungarian GP: Charles Leclerc tops FP1 as Lance Stroll brings out red flags
Leclerc ends FP1 on top at Formula 1's Hungarian Grand Prix, while Aston Martin's B-spec AMR26 suffers a reliability failure
Filip Cleeren
Edited: Jul 24, 2026, 1:04 PM
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Charles Leclerc, Ferrari
Photo by: Clive Mason / Getty Images
Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc topped opening practice at Formula 1's Hungarian Grand Prix, his early benchmark proving over four tenths quicker than Red Bull's Max Verstappen and team-mate Lewis Hamilton.
Leclerc headed Hamilton in the opening stages of practice as Ferrari adorned its 'Macarena' wing with an eye-catching three-piece winglet on top of its actuator, an optional piece for the Hungaroring's high downforce demands.
Mercedes driver George Russell was the first to switch to Pirelli's soft tyres, going just two tenths quicker than Leclerc, which was swiftly bested by Verstappen. Russell was one of several drivers to lock up the fronts in Turn 1, which has been completely resurfaced for this year and was particularly bereft of surface level grip.
Ferrari and Mercedes were two of several teams bringing Hungary-specific updates, largely through additional downforce options for the rear wing. But for McLaren, Budapest was marked on its development calendar for a wholesale floor revision that the Woking team hopes will bring its MCL40 closer to Mercedes and Ferrari in cornering performance.
McLaren handed Oscar Piastri's car to its reserve driver, reigning F2 champion Leonardo Fornaroli, who trialled McLaren's own interpretation of Ferrari's upside-down rear wing, which his race engineer reported was "working well".
Aston Martin went much further still and introduced what amounted to an entirely new car, including a lighter chassis, all-new aero surfaces and a new rear suspension layout. But the team's first test session with its AMR26 B-spec suffered a major setback after 36 minutes when Lance Stroll's rear suspension appeared to buckle on the exit of Turn 2, causing the Canadian to suffer a 360-degree spin, bringing out a red flag as he parked his car.
Lance Stroll came to a halt on track
Photo by: Alastair Staley / LAT Images via Getty Images
After the nine-minute interruption, Leclerc attempted to improve his own 1m19.075s benchmark, which the Monagasque driver had established right before the red flag. But Leclerc appeared to suffer a power unit or gearbox failure in the final sector, coasting into the pits with an ailing car.
Unusually, Leclerc's benchmark remained untouched during the final 14-minute stretch of green-flag running. Verstappen, who complained his Red Bull RB22 felt like it was driving with a handbrake on, was second, his 1.m19.559s almost five tenths down on Leclerc.
Hamilton was third ahead of the second Red Bull of Isack Hadjar, who shipped nine tenths on Leclerc. Russell took fifth ahead of Audi's Gabriel Bortoleto.
Fornaroli wasn't the only young driver to fulfil one of the teams' four compulsory FP1 rookie sessions. Frederik Vesti took over championship leader Kimi Antonelli's Mercedes to go seventh, followed by Nico Hulkenberg and Racing Bulls duo Arvid Lindblad and Liam Lawson who all combined to keep world champion Norris out of the top 10.
Behind 16th-placed Fornaroli, Toyota protege Ryo Hirakawa was 17th in the Haas. Paul Aron took 19th in Franco Colapinto's Alpine, while Former IndyCar ace and Cadillac test driver Colton Herta got his latest taste of F1 machinery and took 20th.
Colton Herta was one of five rookies in action
Photo by: Andy Hone/ LAT Images via Getty Images
Notwithstanding Stroll's suspension failure, Aston Martin's B-spec made a cautiously promising start in the hands of Fernando Alonso, who was entrenched in F1's midfield with the 13th-fastest time, his 1m21.550s two and a half seconds behind the benchmark.
Following the session, Carlos Sainz was summoned to the stewards' office for impeding Verstappen and allegedly driving erratically, much to the Dutchman's chagrin.
Photos from Hungarian GP - Friday
Hungarian Grand Prix - Friday
Hungarian Grand Prix - Friday
Hungarian Grand Prix - Friday
Hungarian Grand Prix - Friday
Hungarian Grand Prix - Friday
Hungarian Grand Prix - Friday
Hungarian Grand Prix - Friday
Hungarian Grand Prix - Friday
Hungarian Grand Prix - Friday
Hungarian Grand Prix - Friday
Hungarian Grand Prix - Friday
Hungarian Grand Prix - Friday
Hungarian Grand Prix - Friday
Hungarian Grand Prix - Friday
Hungarian Grand Prix - Friday
Hungarian Grand Prix - Friday
Hungarian Grand Prix - Friday
Hungarian Grand Prix - Friday
Hungarian Grand Prix - Friday
Hungarian Grand Prix - Friday
Hungarian Grand Prix - Friday
Hungarian Grand Prix - Friday
Hungarian Grand Prix - Friday
Hungarian Grand Prix - Friday
Hungarian Grand Prix - Friday
Hungarian Grand Prix - Friday
Hungarian Grand Prix - Friday
Hungarian Grand Prix - Friday
Hungarian Grand Prix - Friday
Hungarian Grand Prix - Friday
Hungarian Grand Prix - Friday
Hungarian Grand Prix - Friday
Hungarian Grand Prix - Friday
Hungarian Grand Prix - Friday
Hungarian Grand Prix - Friday
Hungarian Grand Prix - Friday
Hungarian Grand Prix - Friday
Hungarian Grand Prix - Friday
Hungarian Grand Prix - Friday
Hungarian Grand Prix - Friday
Hungarian Grand Prix - Friday
Hungarian Grand Prix - Friday
Hungarian Grand Prix - Friday
Hungarian Grand Prix - Friday
Hungarian Grand Prix - Friday
Hungarian Grand Prix - Friday
Hungarian Grand Prix - Friday
Hungarian Grand Prix - Friday
Hungarian Grand Prix - Friday
Hungarian Grand Prix - Friday
Formula 1
50
F1 Hungarian GP: FP1 results
All Stats
Cla Driver # Chassis Engine Laps Time Interval Tyres km/h 1 C. Leclerc Ferrari 16
Ferrari Ferrari 19
1'19.075
S 199.451 2 M. Verstappen Red Bull Racing 3
Red Bull Red Bull 25
+0.484
1'19.559
0.484 S 198.237 3 L. Hamilton Ferrari 44
Ferrari Ferrari 23
+0.543
1'19.618
0.059 S 198.090 4 I. Hadjar Red Bull Racing 6
Red Bull Red Bull 25
+0.922
1'19.997
0.379 S 197.152 5 G. Russell Mercedes 63
Mercedes Mercedes 21
+0.991
1'20.066
0.069 S 196.982 6 G. Bortoleto Audi 5
Audi Audi 30
+1.285
1'20.360
0.294 S 196.261 7 F. Vesti Mercedes 72
Mercedes Mercedes 24
+1.392
1'20.467
0.107 S 196.000 8 N. Hulkenberg Audi 27
Audi Audi 29
+1.548
1'20.623
0.156 S 195.621 9 A. Lindblad Racing Bulls 41
RB Red Bull 28
+1.685
1'20.760
0.137 S 195.289 10 L. Lawson Racing Bulls 30
RB Red Bull 28
+1.791
1'20.866
0.106 S 195.033 11 L. Norris McLaren 1
McLaren Mercedes 26
+1.949
1'21.024
0.158 S 194.653 12 E. Ocon Haas F1 Team 31
Haas Ferrari 24
+1.976
1'21.051
0.027 S 194.588 13 F. Alonso Aston Martin Racing 14
Aston Martin Honda 20
+2.475
1'21.550
0.499 S 193.397 14 P. Gasly Alpine 10
Alpine Mercedes 29
+2.629
1'21.704
0.154 S 193.033 15 A. Albon Williams 23
Williams Mercedes 28
+2.744
1'21.819
0.115 S 192.762 16
L. Fornaroli McLaren
67 McLaren Mercedes 29
+2.815
1'21.890
0.071 M 192.594 17 R. Hirakawa Haas F1 Team 50
Haas Ferrari 25
+2.926
1'22.001
0.111 S 192.334 18 S. Perez Cadillac F1 Team 11
Cadillac Ferrari 22
+3.014
1'22.089
0.088 S 192.128 19
P. Aron Audi
61 
Audi Audi 28
+3.093
1'22.168
0.079 S 191.943 20 C. Herta Cadillac F1 Team 25
Cadillac Ferrari 28
+4.043
1'23.118
0.950 S 189.749 21 L. Stroll Aston Martin Racing 18
Aston Martin Honda 11
+4.396
1'23.471
0.353 H 188.947 22 C. Sainz Williams 55
Williams Mercedes 23
+4.659
1'23.734
0.263 M 188.353 View full results
Read Also:
Formula 1Aston Martin's heavily updated AMR26 breaks cover in Hungary pitlane
Formula 1Racing Bulls grows wings: VCARB 03 adds two fins to airbox in Hungary update
Formula 1‘If you're not ready to adapt, you're not good enough’ - Lando Norris addresses F1's 2026 changing driving styles
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