Monaco – EL1: Leclerc the fastest, Ferrari and Red Bull neck and neck

After dominating the three free practice sessions for the Spanish Grand Prix in Barcelona last weekend, Charles Leclerc has once again signed the reference time of the first driving session in the Principality. The local hero, born on the Rock, set a time of 1'14"531 and was just ahead of Sergio Perez (+0 »039) and Carlos Sainz (+0 »070), while the championship leader Max Verstappen finished 4th, 0”181 behind the Monegasque’s time. 

The Dutchman, however, quickly got into the rhythm, as usual, by being the first to set a benchmark of 1'15"327 on Hard tyres, while the majority of his opponents were fitted with Medium tyres. . He was first dispossessed of the lead in the timesheet mid-session by a Lando Norris (McLaren) who has not yet fully recovered from his tonsillitis. The McLarens, which also feature the Ayrton Senna logo in homage, appeared in good shape on the Principality route, with Norris 5th when Ricciardo, winner here in 2018, was in 7th place (+0 »626).

Verstappen and Leclerc still have more up their sleeves

If Max Verstappen was the first to go under the 1'15 mark, it was ultimately Charles Leclerc who took the best time of the session. His teammate at Ferrari Carlos Sainz, who in the wake of the reference time signed by the Monegasque, had lit the first two sectors in purple, finally had to cut his effort when encountering traffic in the Piscine sequence. The Spaniard seemed to attack hard for a first session, and does not seem to be fazed by his mistakes in recent weeks. 

The drivers took advantage of this first run of the weekend with these new cars to get their bearings and test the limits. Thus, Max Verstappen, Charles Leclerc and Kevin Magnussen all three pulled straight into the first corner of Sainte-Dévote, when many drivers preferred to short-circuit the new chicane, located at the exit of the tunnel. Note that neither the Ferrari drivers nor the drivers Red Bull did not use Soft tires. The latter probably preferred to get their bearings on this first session without wasting any red rubber. In the top 10, alone Hag (10th) wore it. 

Pushing hard in practice 😳👊

Verstappen 👈 👈 Leclerc

The championship's top two both dived into Sainte Devote's escape road 👀#MonacoGP #F1 pic.twitter.com/jp3fzYqPbm

— Formula 1 (@F1) May 27, 2022

Note that the session was temporarily interrupted by a red flag caused by Mick Schumacher. The pilot Haas was in fact betrayed by its mechanics after twenty minutes of the session, blocking the entrance to the pits while the always very quick marshals cleared the Haas out of the way. Excellent performance from the Frenchman Pierre Gasly, still very comfortable here and who sets the 6th fastest time, sandwiched between the two McLarens. After their good weekend in Catalonia, the Mercedes appear in the top 10 but Lewis Hamilton complained a lot about the bounce.

Hamilton notably requested that foam be installed in his car to protect his elbows. The Briton has indeed taken to the radio on numerous occasions to complain about the purpoising of the W13. Valtteri Bottas did not sign the slightest round, because of a technical problem discovered by Alfa Romeo on his car. At the house of Alpine, Alonso finished 13th and Esteban Ocon 16th. The second free practice session will take place this Friday at 17 p.m. 

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