Leclerc still achieved the fastest lap at home after a collision, leading Monaco for the first time

On Friday local time in Monaco, Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc showed strong momentum in his first free practice at home Monaco Grand Prix. The Monaco driver who finally won the championship from pole position last year, after experiencing the small episode of Aston Martin racing in rear-end of Lance Stoll's hairpin corner, he used the soft tires to produce the fastest lap of 1 minute 11 seconds 964, injecting a heart-boosting agent into the weekend event. His result eventually topped Red Bull driver Max Verstappen at the top of the practice competition with a margin of 0.163 seconds.

McLaren driver Lando Norris ranked third, and Williams driver Alexander Albour unexpectedly ranked fourth. McLaren driver Oscar Piastri, the leader in the standings, ran the fifth fastest with neutral tires. Mercedes driver George Russell ranked sixth, Williams' Carlos Sainz seventh, and Alpey's Pierre Gasley eighth. Seven-time world champion Leclerc's teammate Lewis Hamilton pressed the shoulder at the exit of the pool bend, causing the car to evacuate, which could damage the chassis, and ended up only ranked ninth. Aston Martin's two-time world champion Fernando Alonso ranked in the top ten, with the score gap between the top ten drivers being only 0.7 seconds. During the practice match, Leclerc and Stole collided in the hairpin bend and became the focus event. The accident caused the race to briefly show the red flag to clean up the track debris. The race officer has summoned Canadian driver Stoll to be investigated for the accident responsibility. Aston Martin confirmed that the rear suspension of the car was damaged and needed to replace the gearbox, while Ferrari continued to practice after replacing the front wing for Leclerc.

The driver, who won three pole positions in Monaco in the past four years, said on Thursday that the team is limited in competitiveness, but is looking forward to surprises. Although Ferrari has shortcomings in lap speed and slow corner performance this season, the slowest street track of the year does not require compromise on straight speed, providing it with a counterattack opportunity. Leclerc's performance undoubtedly adds more possibilities to Ferrari's prospects for the race in this site.