Charles Leclerc fastest in first Hungary F1 practice new Aston Martin car breaks down
Charles Leclerc was well clear of the rest in first practice in Hungary as Aston Martin suffers early setback.
Charles Leclerc set an imposing pace to top the first practice session at the Hungarian Grand Prix, as Aston Martin’s upgraded Formula 1 car suffered an early failure.
Leclerc was 0.484 seconds faster than Red Bull’s Max Verstappen, while Lewis Hamilton, the most successful driver at the Hungaroring with nine pole positions and eight victories, was 0.543s behind his Ferrari team-mate.
Leclerc broke down in the closing 10 minutes of a dramatic first hour of practice in Budapest, where Aston Martin has grabbed the headlines by introducing a huge new upgrade for the final F1 race before the summer break.
2026 F1 Hungarian Grand Prix - Friday Practice Results
Fernando Alonso finished an improved 13th in the FP1 order, however team-mate Lance Stroll suffered a suspected rear left suspension failure in a worrying start to the weekend for the Silverstone-based outfit.
Isack Hadjar was fourth-fastest but nearly a second off the pace in his Red Bull, while George Russell rounded out the top-five.
Russell’s Mercedes team-mate and championship leader Andrea Kimi Antonelli was one of five drivers who sat out of first practice so that rookies could take part.
Fred Vesti, who stood in for Antonelli, ended up seventh-fastest, behind Russell and Audi’s Gabriel Bortoleto, who wound up 1.285s off the pace.
Nico Hulkenberg took eighth in the second Audi, ahead of the Racing Bulls pair of Arvid Lindblad and Liam Lawson, who completed the top-10 order.
McLaren didn’t really get up and running in FP1 as Lando Norris debuted the team’s upgraded MCL40 on his way to finishing 11th-quickest, while reigning Formula 2 champion Leonardo Fornaroli was the fastest rookie in P16.
Verstappen and Sainz called to stewards
Verstappen and Carlos Sainz have been summoned to see the stewards after FP1 following an early incident which saw both noted for driving erratically.
Sainz got in the way of Verstappen when the Red Bull driver was trying to do a fast lap.
"Unbelievable these guys," Verstappen complained on the radio. “That was actually really dangerous, like he even slammed on the brakes.”
Verstappen appeared to retaliate in frustration as he slammed on the brakes in front of his former F1 team-mate Sainz, who had an eventful session.
The Williams driver suffered a massive lock-up down at Turn 1 later in first practice and reported radio issues on his way to ending up slowest of the 22 runners.
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