During the first practice sessions of the 2026 Australian Grand Prix, Ferrari and McLaren dominated, with Charles Leclerc posting the fastest time ahead of his teammate Lewis Hamilton before Oscar Piastri made the fastest lap.
The first practice session (FP1) delivered a strong start for Ferrari, with Leclerc heading the timing sheets and team‑mate Hamilton just behind him, securing a Ferrari one‑two across the opening hour.
This was noteworthy as both drivers extracted a solid lap time in the early running, despite tricky conditions and some teams struggling for rhythm.
Red Bull looked competitive too, with Max Verstappen and his new team‑mate Isack Hadjar showing a good pace in the top five, hinting at a close battle up front once qualifying comes around.
Meanwhile, FP1 also revealed reliability concerns for a few teams, as McLaren dealt with technical issues limiting track time but they turned this around in FP2.
Reigning champion Lando Norris had a tricky start to the Grand Prix weekend. His session was cut short by gearbox issues, limiting him to just a few laps and leaving him near the bottom of the timesheets
He recovered in FP2, completing more laps and finishing seventh fastest, but the early mechanical problems meant he had less track time than many rivals heading into qualifying.
By the time FP2 wrapped up later in the day, the order had shifted somewhat.
Local favourite Oscar Piastri put in a strong showing for McLaren, topping the timesheets with the fastest lap of the day. He beat a rejuvenated Mercedes team duo of Kimi Antonelli and George Russell, who ended FP2 second and third fastest as Mercedes appeared to find good balance and pace.
Hamilton and Leclerc finished just behind them, indicating the top teams remain tightly packed once setups and tyres are considered across sessions. Red Bull remained competitive in the midfield, with Verstappen inside the top six, while the reigning champions were mixing long‑run work and setup tweaks.
Aston Martin’s problems persisted across both practices as they struggled with battery and engine issues that sharply limited laps and data collection, leaving them well off the pace.
