The 2026 Fórmula 1 season saw a busy day on the streets of Monte Carlo as the first official track sessions took place. The seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton closed the second free practice session in first place, setting a time of 1min13s026 in the Ferrari car. The British driver managed to overtake his teammate, Charles Leclerc, who had led the day’s opening activities on the urban circuit. The performance confirms the immediate strength of the Maranello team in the toughest and most technical route on the world calendar.
The complementary training session in the principality indicated a direct reversal of forces within the Italian team itself compared to the training carried out in the morning. Max Verstappen, current competitor of Red Bull, secured third place on the time sheet, repeating exactly the same positioning mark he had obtained at the opening of work in Mônaco. Logo behind the Dutch competitor, Mercedes placed its two official drivers in the following places on the table, showing an improvement in performance at fast lap pace. George Russell ended the afternoon in fourth place, while the young Italian Andrea Kimi Antonelli secured the fifth fastest time.
Inversão positions marks internal dispute at Ferrari
The competition for the highest positions in the table began intensely as soon as the afternoon training clock was started by the stewards. The overwhelming majority of teams started their work using the medium compound tires supplied by Pirelli, seeking to understand the wear behavior in simulations with higher fuel loads. Charles Leclerc registered the first competitive marks by clocking 1min14s240, placing Ferrari momentarily at the top of the classification. Max Verstappen tried to respond with a sequence of fast laps, but was eventually overcome by Lewis Hamilton’s first direct attack on the clock.
The stability of the Ferrari on the undulations of the Monegasque circuit allowed the drivers to extract maximum mechanical grip in the initial sectors. The seven-time world champion demonstrated a quick adaptation to the revised car setup for the afternoon period, progressively reducing his marks with each pass across the finish line. Charles Leclerc still managed to provisionally regain first place with a time of 1min13s613, establishing a new double for the team. The balance presented between the two companions points to a fierce internal battle for the top positions on the official starting grid.
Problema mechanic takes Lando Norris out of activity on Monte Carlo
The yellow flag raised in the intermediate sector broke the mechanical development rhythm of several teams with just fifteen minutes of track activity. British driver Lando Norris suffered a sudden breakdown in his McLaren right at the exit of the tunnel section, one of the fastest and most dangerous areas on the entire urban route. Sem mechanical power to continue, the driver was forced to park the car in the side escape area. The race management immediately activated the virtual safety car procedure so that the track inspectors could safely remove the single-seater.
The early retirement represented a considerable technical loss for the current world champion in preparation for Saturday’s qualifying session. The loss of track time prevents the collection of telemetry data on tire behavior over long sequences of laps. The English team’s engineers began analyzing the hydraulic and electronic components to identify the exact cause of the electrical interruption.
Gabriel Bortoleto secures spot in the top ten
Após After the safety marshals cleared the track, the teams adopted soft tire compounds, identified by the red side stripes. Max Verstappen took advantage of the greater initial grip of the new rubber to take the provisional lead with a time of 1min13s467. Foi in this moment of qualifying simulation that the Brazilian Gabriel Bortoleto managed to fit a positive sequence of splits in the three sectors of the Mônaco track. The young driver controlled the car’s reactions in the Piscina and Rascasse corners to climb the timesheets.
The consistent performance took the Brazilian debutant to eighth place at first, ending the day consolidated in ninth place overall. The result puts the competitor in a favorable position to fight for a place in the decisive phases of defining the grid. Outro The highlight of the intermediate period was the German Nico Hulkenberg, who placed his car in temporary fifth place before the leaders’ final attempts.
The final classification of the second free training showed the following configuration in Monte Carlo:
- Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari) – 1min13s026
- Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) – 1min13s210
- Max Verstappen (Red Bull) – 1min13s467
- George Russell (Mercedes) – 1min13s602
- Andrea Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes) – 1min13s710
- Nico Hulkenberg (Haas) – 1min13s890
- Kevin Magnussen (Haas) – 1min14s012
- Carlos Sainz (Williams) – 1min14s098
- Gabriel Bortoleto (Sauber) – 1min14s120
- Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin) – 1min14s230
Ajustes fines determine the direction for the classification session
Friday’s result demonstrates that the aerodynamic adjustment for low-speed tracks worked correctly in the car designed by Ferrari. Lewis Hamilton managed to find a balanced balance under heavy braking before the port chicane, minimizing oversteer. Red Bull technicians actively worked on tuning the suspension of Max Verstappen, who complained about the car’s behavior when jumping over high curbs. The Dutch driver had to change his trajectories in low-speed curves to avoid losing traction.
Mercedes surprised positively by placing itself as the third force of the day, surpassing the McLaren cars that suffered from the lack of mileage. The engineers at Mônaco know that the starting position defines almost the entire outcome of Sunday’s race due to the extreme difficulty of overtaking. The third free practice is scheduled for Saturday morning, serving as the final adjustment before the official starting positions are defined.