MERCEDES ARE OMINOUSLY FAST, SAY RIVALS AFTER AUSTRALIAN GP PRACTICE
Mercedes are streets ahead of the pack going into Sunday’s season-opening Australian Grand Prix, according to Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc.
Although it was McLaren’s Oscar Piastri who finished day one of practice top of the timesheets, just ahead of the Mercedes duo of Kimi Antonelli and George Russell, Leclerc said it was obvious which team had the quickest car. That is good news for George Russell, the bookmakers’ favourite for the title.
“I think Mercedes are slowly showing a bit more of what they have, and in FP2 we are starting to see where we are lacking compared to them,” said Leclerc. “They are clearly very strong, especially in terms of race pace.
“I don’t know how much margin they still have on qualifying pace, but in the race pace they seem to be very strong compared to us.”
Mercedes’ pace in FP2 was a reversal from the first session of the day when all four Mercedes-powered teams – Mercedes, McLaren, Alpine and Williams – struggled. A sign, perhaps, of just how sensitive and capricious these new power units can be. And how track-specific.
Toto Wolff, the Mercedes team principal, called FP1 a “difficult, challenging” session. By the time second practice came around, however, Mercedes had sorted out their issues.
Piastri’s quickest lap of 1min 19.729sec was two tenths quicker than Antonelli’s fastest lap, with Russell a further tenth behind. Ferrari’s Lewis Hamilton and Leclerc, who had gone quickest in FP1, were fourth and fifth fastest, just ahead of Red Bull’s Max Verstappen, with Lando Norris in seventh, more than a second behind his team mate.
But Leclerc said Mercedes’ advantage was much wider than the one-lap times suggested. “Race-pace, Mercedes were very, very impressive,” he said. “In terms of qualifying pace, it’s difficult to know how much more there is to come. Oscar did a very impressive lap. But I don’t know also what [McLaren] are doing between the cars because maybe they might be testing different things between the cars, because Lando was quite far back.
“Again it’s the first race of a completely new car, so lots of question marks. But on the long run I will say you have a bit of a better picture of what’s going on in the performances of everybody so far.
“I hope I’m wrong and that we are much faster tomorrow [in qualifying], but at the moment it seems to be Mercedes a step ahead and then Red Bull, McLaren and ourselves after.”
Verstappen had already warned at pre-season testing in Bahrain a couple of weeks ago that he felt Mercedes were holding back. “Just wait until Melbourne and see how much power they suddenly find,” the four-time champion said. “I already know.”
Melbourne practice was another nightmare outing for Aston Martin. The day after after team principal Adrian Newey admitted his drivers were worried about the possibility of “permanent nerve damage” in their fingers due to the violence of the vibrations emanating from Aston Martin’s Honda power unit, Fernando Alonso failed to make it out of the garage at all in FP1 while Lance Stroll managed just three laps.
The Aston pair fared slightly better in FP2, managing 18 and 13 laps respectively. But they were still slowest of all the drivers to set a lap, five and six seconds off Piastri’s pace respectively.
Newey admitted in a press conference between sessions that the team had just two “operational batteries” left for the entire weekend – the two in the cars – having brought four with them.
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Verdict on each team after two practice sessions
McLaren: They look there or thereabouts
Mercedes: Perhaps did not show their full hand
Ferrari: Encouraging, but only that so far
Red Bull: They could be fourth fastest
Williams: Towards the back of the midfield looks likely. A lot of improvement needed
Racing Bulls: The front of the midfield looks likely
Aston Martin: Just how bad can it get? They should qualify, if they can get the cars out there...
Haas: Fighting Racing Bulls
Audi: Solid, respectable
Alpine: A few too many problems so far
Cadillac: A strong start for a new team
Alonso speaks after FP2
“Obviously we are still analysing the data of FP2. It didn’t feel much different to be honest than in Bahrain. We didn’t complete too many laps because of the Honda issue in FP1 and still a little bit of Honda issues in FP2 as well. Hopefully tomorrow we have a little bit [more running] in FP3. We are OK to do it, it is more a question for Honda, if they have the stock.
“We are much less negative than media and than people around, it is nice to tell the story when someone is doing great and when someone... when things are not going well, you try to exaggerate both ends. As I said yesterday we have a big challenge in front of us and everyone in the team is embracing the challenge.
“This is Formula One, unfortunately technology is very complex. Maybe we don’t see the progress that we all want to see but there are things happening... smaller or bigger but there is always progress in teams. Let’s hope it is visible in lap time as soon as possible.”
In other words: this is all a Honda problem. This sounds familiar...
Watch: Verstappen has a big off through the gravel
This was probably the most dramatic moment in FP2. Verstappen did well to catch this without it going into the barriers.
Lost some of the under-floor, though. Another thing that shows the drivers are still adapting to these cars.
So far, so encouraging...
The second practice session of a new regulation set and the top 14 are within two seconds of each other and, so far, no team appears to be miles out ahead at the front.
For reference, in 2014, when the power units were last overhauled, the fastest non-Mercedes car in FP2 was half a second off the pace and the gap from first to 14th was 2.7sec. So, an improvement, even if the sample size is not large.
None of this is to say that one team will not steal a march on the rest of the teams come qualifying and/or the race. Seeing one team dominate like Mercedes did in 2014 (and beyond...) would be bad for the sport.
⏱️FP2 classification
- PIA 1:19.729
- ANT +0.214
- RUS +0.320
- HAM +0.321
- LEC +0.562
- VER +0.637
- NOR +1.065
- LIN +1.193
- HAD +1.212
- OCO +1.450
- BEA +1.597
- HUL +1.622
- LAW +1.629
- BOR +1.939
- ALB +2.118
- GAS +2.438
- SAI +2.524
- COL +2.890
- BOT +3.931
- ALO +4.933
- STR +6.087
- PER (NO TIME)
🏁FP2 ends - Piastri fastest
A much closer session than FP1, with the top 14 within two seconds and only the Cadillacs and Aston Martins more than three seconds off Piastri’s time.
FP2 - Leclerc locks up at turn three
Into the gravel he goes. He didn’t seem to be going that quickly but that may have been a false impression from the replay.
FP2 - Hadjar’s turn to lock up
He does so at the penultimate corner and gives the lawn a bit of a trim before continuing. Not easy to drive, these cars, it seems. Good.
Into the final few minutes. Piastri still leads and the top four are separated by 0.321sec.
FP2 - 🟨Yellow flags...
Good news for Perez, that he made it out finally, is followed by bad news, that he is told to stop the car. He only managed two laps before he has to pull over to the side of the track. Teething problems for Cadillac. Not quite sure what the issue is yet.
We get a Virtual Safety Car.
FP2 - Into the final 10 minutes
Here is the current top 10:
- PIA 1:19.729
- ANT +0.214
- RUS +0.320
- HAM +0.321
- LEC +0.562
- VER +0.637
- NOR +1.065
- LIN +1.193
- HAD +1.212
- OCO +1.450
For reference, the fastest time in FP2 was 1:16.439. Verstappen actually did another lap after that off.
FP2 - Big off for Verstappen!
At the chicane at turn 10 he runs wide into the gravel at high speed and he loses some bodywork or something from the underside of the car. Manages to keep it out of the barrier but he will need to return to the pit lane. Just had a late snap of oversteer right on the exit when you put the power fully down again.
FP2 - Norris with his fastest lap
He stays seventh, 1.065sec off his team-mate’s time.
Stroll is told to box because they have an issue. 10 laps for him and 13 for Aston Martin team-mate Alonso, which is some improvement.
FP2 - Still no sign of Perez
I would assume that he will not be running in the session. Impressive what Cadillac have achieved from scratch as an F1 team. They will be a long way off the pace initially but you would imagine that will come down as the season goes on, fairly rapidly perhaps.
Elsewhere further down the order we have Bearman in 11th 1.6sec off the pace. Albon is the lead Williams in 15th 2.1sec off Piastri’s time with Sainz a further four tenths down. Hulkenberg is the lead Audi, 1.6sec slower than Piastri.
How close is the field?
A bit closer than in FP1. The top six are within seven tenths of each other with the top 17 separated by around 2.5sec. Alonso has improved to go around 5.210sec off Piastri’s best time. That is within seven per cent.
FP2 - Piastri now fastest for McLaren
Twenty-two minutes left in the session and the McLaren driver is 0.214sec ahead of Antonelli, Russell, Hamilton, Leclerc, Verstappen and Lindblad. Some hopes already that the top four may be reasonably close.
Hamilton, meanwhile, locks up at turn three and goes through the gravel. That is becoming a common mistake as drivers start to push a bit more.
His next lap is his best of the session and it keeps him fourth but 0.321sec off Piastri.
FP2 - Verstappen moves into the top 10
He is up into seventh, which then becomes eighth as Lindblad puts in another decent lap time to go sixth. Now within a second of Antonelli’s fastest time. Alonso has now set a lap time, albeit nearly six seconds off the pace and also not within 107 per cent of the fastest lap of the session.
FP2 - Current order
- ANT 1:19.943
- RUS +0.106
- HAM +0.176
- LEC +0.437
- PIA +0.695
- HAD +0.998
- LIN +1.168
- OCO +1.236
Or at least the top eight for now.
FP2 - Russell goes off track
Looks like it was at turn three or four and he has some gravel on his tyres. He manages to get back on track and keep going, though. Yep, a big lock-up at turn three and just could not slow the car down enough and get it rotated.
It is now Antonelli who heads the timesheets by 0.106sec over Russell. Hamilton is in third nearly 0.7sec off Antonelli’s time.
Verstappen is back out on track, which is good news. That means Sergio Perez is the only man yet to take to the track.
Stroll improves with his second timed lap to 5.8sec off the fastest time. That would be 7.3 per cent off the fastest time of the session...
FP2 - Stroll does a proper lap time
More than he managed in FP1. Well, proper is perhaps an overstatement, but it is a 1:27.214sec which is 7.1sec off Russell’s lap time. For all the talk of how many laps Aston Martin might manage in the race, they might not even be able to make the 107 per cent cut-off time. That lap from Stroll is nearly nine per cent off Russell’s at the moment.
Let’s say the fastest time in Q1 this year is a 1:18.8sec, then to qualify Aston Martin would need to post a 1:24.315 to be within 107 per cent and thus qualify to race, assuming they had not done that lap time previously in the weekend. That seems unlikely at the moment.
FP2 - Russell on a good lap
He is on the soft tyres and has just gone fastest and may be going faster still.
Indeed he does, beating his time by half a second before his team-mate slots into second around 0.178sec behind. Hamilton in third, Piastri fourth, both more than a second off Russell’s fastest time.
FP2 - Some work being done on Verstappen’s car
Is it significant? He conked out at the end of the pit lane and has now been hauled back into the garage.
FP2 - Alonso makes it out from the garage
And onto the track. That is something he did not manage in FP1. How many laps will he manage in this session? Every lap feels like a success for Aston Martin at the moment as the process of discovery begins about their problem. I cannot imagine this is much fun for Fernando Alonso, he is limping around the final sector.
Piastri, meanwhile, has moved fastest for McLaren 0.163sec ahead of Antonelli.
FP2 - Here is a quick order
- ANT 1:20.801
- HAM +0.102
- RUS +0.183
- PIA +0.275
- LEC +0.677
- HAD +0.901
- HUL +0.956
- LAW +1.218
- SAI +1.751
- GAS +2.029
This session at this point last year would likely have been deathly dull. But this is quite fun. Problems aplenty and lots to learn.
FP2 - Verstappen being pushed back to the garage
16 drivers so far have set a lap time. Everyone except Stroll, Bottas, Verstappen, Perez and Alonso. Perez is not in the car but Bottas is out on track.
Hamilton is on a good lap, negotiating traffic and could go fastest of anyone here. Indeed he does, but Russell may be about to beat it again. Not quite, but within a tenth.
⁉️Colapinto noted for driving unnecessarily slowly. And the Russell/Lindblad incident in the pit lane will also be looked at.
FP2 - Verstappen stalls at the end of the pit lane
Or at least grinds to a halt. The car appears to be stuck in gear...
Meanwhile Lewis Hamilton is leading the way. Or at least he was until his former team-mate Russell beats him by a couple of tenths with a 1:21.3 dead. Antonelli then pops up into second.
A chaotic start to the session, it is fair to say.
FP2 - 🟨Yellow flags
What has happened to Colapinto? He is crawling on the pit straight and it looks like he has a problem. But then he gets going again. Problem with the power unit and battery? It should have been his first flying lap. Replays show that the car just goes into neutral but he stays on the racing line, which isn’t much help.
Hamilton has to take evasive action at the last moment and avoids the mother of all shunts. Get off the racing line, Franco.
FP2 - Russell did hit someone
Lindblad was in the fast lane in the pits, Russell was trying to edge out and they ended up trying to do it at the same time and there was contact at very low speed. Anyway, that incident has been noted. Six of one and half a dozen of the other, that.
FP2 - It does not sound good for Perez
Ted Kravitz, of Sky Sports, reports that the car is up on the stands with no battery in the car. That is the case for Fernando Alonso, too.
Problems for Russell? He comes out of his pit box but then the car stops and the mechanics replace the front wing. Has he hit something or someone?
🟢FP2 begins!
The green light at the end of the pit lane comes on and away the cars go.
Session times for the rest of the weekend
A reminder of these:
Saturday, March 7
FP3 – 1.30am
Qualifying – 5am
Sunday, March 8
Race – 4am
Right, just over five minutes until FP2 kicks off
A few teams could do with a bit more running after a limited number of laps in FP1. Lando Norris is one of those drivers, but not the only one.
What is going wrong with Aston Martin?
You might have seen that Aston Martin only managed limited running (or no running at all for Alonso) in FP1. Why? Tom Cary was there for an extraordinary press conference with team principal Adrian Newey.
Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso fears “permanent nerve damage” in his hands if he drives more than 25 laps of this weekend’s season-opening grand prix, such are the violent vibrations he is experiencing in the car.
The extraordinary claim, which was made by Adrian Newey, Aston Martin’s team principal, on the opening morning of the Melbourne race weekend, is the latest embarrassing development a shambolic build-up to the new season from the Silverstone-based team.
A reminder of this season’s calendar
This is subject to change, given the ongoing events in the Middle East. Bahrain and Saudi Arabia are scheduled to be the fourth and fifth events of the year in a little over a month’s time. Who knows what the situation will be then and whether F1 might be able to find a European replacement or two. Turkey? Possibly. Portimao? Maybe.
Our F1 experts predict who will win and who will fall apart
This weekend’s Australian Grand Prix kicks off an era of new regulations that have transformed how the cars operate with new challenges for drivers and teams. It begins a period of uncertainty and anticipation but despite that, our F1 writers have predicted who they think will flourish and who will falter this season.
Read the full series of predictions from Tom Cary, Luke Slater, Gary Anderson and Frankie Christou.
A big field spread there in FP1
This was always expected but it does underline how uncompetitive these new regulations begin. The top 12 separated by two seconds. For reference, at the final race last season the top 12 was separated by 0.492sec with one second separating the top 18, compared to 3.7sec here.
FP1 times and classification
- LEC 1:20.267
- HAM +0.469
- VER +0.522
- HAD +0.820
- LIN +1.046
- PIA +1.075
- RUS +1.104
- ANT +1.109
- BOR +1.429
- HUL +1.702
- OCO +1.894
- SAI +2.056
- LAW +2.346
- BEA +2.415
- ALB +2.863
- COL +3.058
- BOT +3.755
- GAS +3.768
- NOR +4.124
- PER +4.353
- STR +30.067
Leclerc heads Ferrari 1-2 in FP1
Ferrari duo Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton topped the timesheets in the first practice session of 2026, but there was further misery for beleaguered Aston Martin.
A day after team principal Adrian Newey admitted his drivers were worried about the possibility of “permanent nerve damage” in their fingers due to the violence of the vibrations emanating from Aston Martin’s Honda power unit, Fernando Alonso failed to make it out of the garage in FP1 while Lance Stroll managed just three laps. According to the team, both cars experienced “suspected PU-related issues”.
Newey later admitted the team had just two batteries left for the entire weekend – the two in the cars – having brought four with them. So any further issues will be terminal to their weekend.
World champion Lando Norris was the other big loser from FP1, managing just seven laps before his McLaren had to return to the garage with a gearbox issue. It was not an eye-catching session in general for the Mercedes-powered cars, with Norris’s team-mate Oscar Piastri only sixth quickest and the two Mercedes of George Russell and Kimi Antonelli only seventh and eighth. Toto Wolff, the Mercedes team boss, called it a “challenging” and “difficult” session for the bookmakers’ favourites.
But it is still very early days. Lots of cars experienced technical troubles, which is only to be expected given the sport is undergoing the biggest regulation overhaul in its history.
In terms of lap times, Leclerc topped the timesheets with a 1min20.267sec which was about three seconds slower than Norris managed in FP1 last year (also held in warm, dry conditions). Expect the rate of improvement from session to session to be much faster this year, however.
Leclerc’s lap, which he set right at the end, lifted him 0.469 seconds clear of Hamilton. The two Ferraris were followed by the two Red Bulls of Max Verstappen and Isack Hadjar, with rookie Lindblad fifth fastest.
2026-03-06T07:05:59Z
