Oscar Piastri led a McLaren one-two in the opening practice session for the Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix at Imola, continuing his impressive form in the 2025 Formula One season. The Australian driver, who has won four of the last five races, set the fastest lap with a time of 1:16.545 on the softest tyre compound. His teammate, Lando Norris, was just 0.032 seconds behind, securing second place.
Carlos Sainz, driving for Williams, posted the third-fastest time, only 0.052 seconds off Piastri’s pace. George Russell of Mercedes was close behind in fourth, with a lap time just 0.002 seconds slower than Sainz. Lewis Hamilton, preparing for his first race in Italy as a Ferrari driver, completed the top five, 0.096 seconds behind the leader.
The session was cut short due to a crash by Sauber’s rookie Gabriel Bortoleto, who lost control of his car and hit the tyre barriers at the Rivazza corner. Fortunately, Bortoleto was unharmed.
Pierre Gasly secured sixth place for Alpine, while Max Verstappen of Red Bull faced grip issues and finished seventh. Alexander Albon (Williams), Bortoleto, and Nico Hulkenberg (Sauber) rounded out the top ten.
Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc, who was unwell on Thursday, managed to finish 12th, despite running wide into the gravel at one point. Italian rookie Kimi Antonelli, making his home debut for Mercedes, placed 13th.
The Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix continues with further practice sessions and qualifying ahead of Sunday’s race.
