Leclerc Tops Verstappen in Monaco GP Practice Amid Stroll Clash

Charles Leclerc Tops First Practice for Monaco Grand Prix Amidst Eventful Session

The first practice session for the Monaco Grand Prix got underway on a dramatic note, with Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc emerging as the fastest driver despite a collision with Lance Stroll earlier in the session. According to Sky Sports, Leclerc set a lap time of 1:11.964, edging out Red Bull’s Max Verstappen by a mere 0.163 seconds.

The session was marked by several incidents, including a close call between Lewis Hamilton and Kimi Antonelli at the high-speed Swimming Pool chicane. Hamilton had to take drastic measures to avoid a collision, navigating around Antonelli’s Mercedes. Sky Sports reported that Hamilton finished the session in ninth place, just behind Williams’ Carlos Sainz and Alpine’s Pierre Gasly.

The incident that brought out the red flag was a collision between Leclerc and Stroll, which occurred when the Aston Martin driver moved onto the racing line at Turn 6 hairpin, causing Leclerc to run into the back of him. The incident resulted in debris on the track, and Ferrari quickly replaced Leclerc’s front corner before he returned to the session. As per Sky Sports, Stroll missed the remainder of the session due to damage to his gearbox and will appear before the stewards to explain his actions.

McLaren’s Lando Norris was third fastest, just three tenths behind Leclerc, with Williams’ Alex Albon in fourth. Oscar Piastri, who leads Norris by 13 points in the standings, was fifth, and Mercedes’ George Russell was sixth. Sky Sports reported that a range of tyre compounds were used across the 60-minute practice session, with an unpredictable race expected on Sunday due to the introduction of two mandatory pit stops.

At least three tyre sets will need to be run during the 78 laps, and pit stops can occur at any time. Red Bull team principal Christian Horner noted that the two-stop strategy “could be a bit of a lottery” on Sunday, depending on factors such as Safety Car deployments, weather, and tactics. As quoted by Sky Sports, Horner said, “The two-stop could be a bit of a lottery on Sunday. It depends on Safety Car, and weather and tactics and so on. It’s going to keep the strategists flat out and deliver another element to the race.”

The full timesheet for the first practice session can be found below:

View the full schedule for Sky Sports F1’s Monaco GP coverage.



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