Summary

  • Oscar Piastri fastest in Australian Grand Prix second practice

  • Mercedes' Antonelli and Russell second and third

  • Ferrari's Charles Leclerc fastest in Melbourne first practice

  • Select audio icon for Sports Extra commentary (UK only)

  • All you need to know about new F1 cars

  • Arvid Lindblad, 18, set to become youngest British F1 driver

  • Cadillac and Audi making F1 debuts

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Live Reporting

Lorraine McKenna

  1. And the rest

    11. Esteban Ocon (Haas)

    12. Carlos Sainz (Williams)

    13. Liam Lawson (Racing Bulls)

    14. Oliver Bearman (Haas)

    15. Alex Albon (Williams)

    16. Franco Colapinto (Alpine)

    17. Valtteri Bottas (Cadillac)

    18. Pierre Gasly (Alpine)

    19. Lando Norris (McLaren)

    20. Sergio Perez (Cadillac)

    21. Lance Stroll (Aston Martin)

    22. Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin)

  2. Top 10

    1. Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) - 1:20.267

    2. Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari) ) +0.469

    3. Max Verstappen (Red Bull) +0.522

    4. Isack Hadjar (Red Bull) +0.820

    5. Arvid Lindblad (Racing Bulls) +1.046

    6. Oscar Piastri (McLaren) +1.075

    7. George Russell (Mercedes) +1.104

    8. Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes) +1.109

    9. Gabriel Bortoleto (Audi) +1.429

    10. Nico Hulkenberg (Audi) +1.702

  3. chequered flag

    Chequered flag

    Phew. That's the first practice running of the 2026 season in the books and it's a Ferrari one-two to start us off.

    Charles Leclerc is 0.469 seconds quicker than team-mate Lewis Hamilton at the top followed by the two Red Bulls of Max Verstappen and Isack Hadjar. Briton Arvid Lindblad, in his debut session in Formula 1, puts his Racing Bulls in fifth and Aussie Oscar Piastri is sixth after some earlier issues in his McLaren.

    World champion Lando Norris, meanwhile, has been sat watching on while the team deals with some precautionary gearbox checks.

  4. Leclerc banks quickest lap

    Right at the end of the session, Charles Leclerc swoops in and steals top spot from Ferrari team-mate Lewis Hamilton with a 1:20.267 on the softs.

  5. Lindblad goes P5

    Brit Arvid Lindblad is the sole rookie on the grid this year compared to the five or six we had last season. The teenager has taken over from Isack Hadjar over at Racing Bulls for his debut in Formula 1 and at the end of this first practice session, Lindbald goes fifth fastest on the soft compound.

    Racing Bulls' Arvid Lindblad ahead of a WilliamsGetty Images

  6. Oscar Piastri stays a nearly second off the pace in ninth after his flyer was comprised by that Sergio Perez spin. The Australian has kept the soft tyre, while the likes of Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen take the mediums for the final minutes of this opening practice session.

  7. VSC cleared

    Off we pop again and Oscar Piastri is winding up for a push lap in his McLaren but Sergio Perez has spun off in his Cadillac after locking his rear tyres. "I'm having a lot of engine braking," says the Mexican driver.

  8. Virtual safety car

    The marshals are on the scene to give Alex Albon a helping hand with his stricken Williams.

    Just before that stoppage for Albon, Ferrari's Lewis Hamilton picked up a lovely slipstream which propelled him to the top of the board with a 1:20.736 on the soft compound.

  9. yellow flag

    Yellow flag - Albon stops

    Williams are another team who have found the going tough before the season has even started. Alex Albon said on Thursday the car is a bit overweight at the moment and the team will probably be at the back of the midfield this year.

    And now Albon has come to a stop on track. He calls into base to say he's "lost power steering and everything" around Turns 10 and 11.

  10. Verstappen finds pace

    Charles Leclerc versus Max Verstappen in a championship fight - discuss.

    The Dutchman finds more pace in his Red Bull - 0.040 seconds to be exact - and climbs over the Ferrari of Leclerc to sit at the top of the timesheets once again.

    His team-mate Isack Hadjar has just had a lock-up on his latest lap and ending up running wide off the track.

    Max VerstappenReuters

  11. Norris out of the car

    World champion Lando Norris is having to watch on from the McLaren hospitality suit, as his car is undergoing some work in the garage which the team say is "precautionary gearbox checks".

  12. Leclerc quickest

    Charles Leclerc can harvest energy with the best of them and the Ferrari man goes straight to the top after his first push lap on the softs with a 1:20.829, ahead of the Red Bull pair Max Verstappen and Isack Hadjar.

  13. Verstappen top on softs

    Yellow rubber has been switched out for red now, as more cars opt for some soft running in first practice.

    Max Verstappen leaps to the top with a 1:20.908 followed by his brand new team-mate Isack Hadjar, 0.179 seconds behind.

    Charles Leclerc has charged up the battery and is ready for a flyer in his Ferrari. What can the Monegasque driver do? ...

  14. Get Involved

    Select the 'Get Involved' button to have your say

    Valtteri Bottas driving the Cadillac in Australian Grand Prix first practiceGetty Images

    James: Aston Martin potentially not scoring a single point in 2026 was not on my F1 bingo card, but here we are.

    Harry: Hearing Bottas over the radio gave me the kind of nostalgia hit you really don't expect at nearly 2am on a Friday.

    Dan: So exciting to see Ferrari up the top of the timings. I'd love to see a Lewis title charge.

  15. Russell goes P5

    George Russell has been tagged as the favourite to take the title this season, as many people feel Mercedes have hit the jackpot with their car and engine under the new regulations.

    Russell has just headed out on the soft compound, so now we'll get to see the Briton push hard around Albert Park.

    However, he can't knock down the likes of Ferrari and Red Bull, and after his first push on the softs, Russell goes fifth on the timesheets, eight tenths away from Charles Leclerc's best marker on the mediums.

    George RussellGetty Images

  16. Andrew Benson
    BBC F1 correspondent in Melbourne on BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra

    Ferrari and Red Bull have started this session really impressively. They are running 1-2-3-4. It is a surprise, I have to say, because everybody in the pit-lane thought after pre-season testing that Mercedes were in the best place.

  17. Top five

    1. Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) - 1:21.227

    2. Max Verstappen (Red Bull) +0.176

    3. Isack Hadjar (Red Bull) +0.233

    4. Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari) +0.471

    5. Oscar Piastri (McLaren) +1.175

  18. Ferrari versus Red Bull

    Isack Hadjar, Max Verstappen and Charles Leclerc are trading quickest times at the top of the timesheets.

    Hadjar is down to third, as team-mate Verstappen goes quickest. But here comes the Ferrari of Leclerc, who once again pops his car above the rest of the field with a time of 1:21.227.

    Getting married and becoming world champion in the same year? Place your bets now.

  19. Get Involved

    Select the 'Get Involved' button to have your say

    Anthony: Oh Formula 1... How we've missed you.

    Blair: Early days but feels to me that of the top four, McLaren might be the one in fourth. Ferrari and Red Bull look really impressive too.

  20. Hadjar goes quickest

    Isack Hadjar's first job at Red Bull will be to collect as many points as possible and share the load with four-time world champion Max Verstappen, who basically carried the team to their third-place finish last season.

    The Frenchman has started positively in thid opening practice session and now he sits above Charles Leclerc with a 1:21.460, still on those yellow medium tyres.

    Meanwhile, over at Cadillac: "I got fully blocked by Lewis," says Finn Valtteri Bottas.