Charles Leclerc was the fastest driver on track during opening practice ahead of this weekend’s Hungarian Grand Prix, though his session came to an abrupt and smoky end in its closing stages.
The Ferrari driver radioed his team late in the session to report that something had broken on his car, and mechanics quickly wheeled the smoking machine back into the garage. Despite the early exit, Leclerc‘s pace throughout the session had been strong enough to hold off the rest of the field comfortably.
How the rest of the field stacked up behind Leclerc
Red Bull’s championship contender finished roughly half a second off Leclerc‘s benchmark time, while the second Ferrari, driven by Lewis Hamilton, rounded out the top three despite dealing with its own mechanical concerns. Hamilton radioed in during the session to report issues with his gearbox, describing problems with both upshifts and downshifts throughout the run.
Rounding out the top five were a Racing Bulls driver in fourth and a Mercedes driver in fifth, with the latter looking to bounce back after retiring from last weekend’s Belgian Grand Prix following a first lap collision. That Mercedes driver has now failed to score points in three of the season’s ten rounds so far. His usual teammate, the current championship points leader, sat out the session entirely in accordance with rules requiring a rookie substitute, with that reserve driver finishing seventh in his place.
Aston Martin’s session ended early with a red flag
Aston Martin’s session took a difficult turn when one of its drivers brought out a red flag with twenty minutes remaining after suffering a suspension failure on the left rear of his car. His teammate finished considerably further back in thirteenth position.
The team arrived at this race weekend with a substantial car upgrade package, and the team’s chief trackside officer addressed reporters before the session, describing the team’s approach as realistic and grounded in a long term development plan. He acknowledged that both success and setbacks come with the territory in racing, noting the team has faced difficult stretches before and worked its way through them, while stressing that continued development remains the priority rather than treating any single weekend as decisive.
How the rest of the grid performed
Further down the order, Audi’s two drivers finished sixth and eighth respectively, while Racing Bulls claimed both remaining spots inside the top ten. Attention now turns to the second practice session, scheduled for Friday afternoon, where teams will continue fine tuning setups ahead of qualifying later in the weekend. Leclerc‘s strong pace in the opening session, despite the late mechanical issue, will likely make him one of the drivers to watch as practice continues.
