Sergio Perez was the quickest in the first practice session of the Monaco Grand Prix as Formula 1 teams returned to the iconic street circuit for the first time since 2019.
The Monaco Grand Prix was cancelled in 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic, but the sport was able to return to beautiful Monte Carlo this year and with 50% capacity of fans in the grandstands, as they watched the Mexican finished the quickest in the morning session, surely building his confidence after a difficult start to the season.
It was the perfect first session for Red Bull Racing overall as Max Verstappen went third fastest, one-tenth behind his team-mate on slower tyres, as the team look to close the gap on championship rivals Mercedes AMG Petronas this weekend.
The ‘Silver Arrows’ didn’t have the session they were probably expecting, with current championship leader Lewis Hamilton only managing to go fifth fastest, four-tenths behind Verstappen, and Valtteri Bottas closely followed in sixth.
Surprisingly, the session was dominated by Scuderia Ferrari Mission Winnow’s Carlos Sainz Jr., who spent the majority of first practice at the top of the timing, that was until Verstappen was unleashed. In the final minutes of the session, he put in an excellent lap to go second fastest, seven-hundredths behind the Red Bull.
While one Ferrari was flying, his team-mate bad luck continued at his home circuit. Charles Leclerc only lasted ten minutes before a gearbox issue forced the Monegasque to return to the pits and ultimately ended his practice session early on.
Pierre Gasly also enjoyed a strong morning session around the streets of Monte Carlo, separating Verstappen and the Mercedes in fourth, while his Scuderia AlphaTauri Honda team-mate also finished in the top ten, ninth exactly, in his first outing at the Monaco Grand Prix.
All eyes were on McLaren F1 Team as they revealed a special one-off Gulf livery for Monaco Grand Prix, and it was a beauty as the sun beamed off the new-look MCL35M. Lando Norris, who signed a contract extension with the team yesterday, was seventh fastest overall while his team-mate Daniel Ricciardo, a Grand Prix winner in Monaco, was fifteenth.
Sebastian Vettel will want to have a strong Monaco Grand Prix after struggling so far this season, and the morning session was a positive one for the German as he was eighth quickest, with Lance Stroll in eleventh.
Rounding out the top ten was Alfa Romeo Racing ORLEN’s Kimi Raikkonen, although he suffered a moment where he locked up at the final corner, avoiding any contact with the wall. His team-mate Antonino Giovanni finished twelfth.
Fernando Alonso made his return to the iconic circuit for the first time since 2018, going thirteenth fastest, and that’s similar for his team-mate Esteban Ocon, who finished sixteenth, as both drivers look to build practice throughout the Thursday sessions.
Williams Racing is also celebrating a special moment as the Monaco Grand Prix will be the team’s 750th Grand Prix, and how good would it be to see the British-based team scoring their first point in over two years. But, if the morning session anything to go by, it could be a long weekend for the team, as Nicholas Latifi and George Russell finished fourteenth and nineteenth, respectively.
Uralkali Haas F1 Team’s Nikita Mazepin out-performed his team-mate Mick Schumacher in the first practice session, finishing seventeenth and two-tenths quicker than the German.
Timings to follow
