(Motorsport-Total.com) – Is Ferrari the big favorite for the Formula 1 weekend in Budapest (follow live here in the ticker)? At least Friday is firmly in red hands: Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc were half a second ahead of the rest of the world in practice.
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Hamilton set the fastest time of the day in 1:18.729 minutes, followed by his teammate Leclerc, who was 0.148 seconds slower than the seven-time world champion. Lando Norris (McLaren), who took third place, was already 0.499 seconds off the best time.
Behind him, Max Verstappen (+0.692) took fourth place ahead of Mercedes driver George Russell, who was already almost a second behind. Isack Hadjar (Red Bull) finished sixth, ahead of Liam Lawson (Racing Bulls) and Oscar Piastri (McLaren). Nico Hülkenberg (Audi) once again finished in the top 10 in ninth place, which was rounded off by Arvid Lindblad (Racing Bulls).
World Championship leader Kimi Antonelli finished only in 13th place, 1.9 seconds behind, but unlike his competitors, he did not set his time on soft tires but on mediums, as his qualifying run was compromised.
The session had to be interrupted for a few minutes after Franco Colapinto (Alpine) went off, Lance Stroll was not at the start after his damage in the first practice session.
The most important things in brief:
Result: 2nd Free Practice in Budapest
Friday’s overall result
Photos: Hungarian Grand Prix 2026
F1 Ticker: Paddock live with Ruben Zimmermann
What do the long runs say?
While the fast laps were clearly spread out, it was a bit tighter in the long runs – and from Mercedes’ perspective, significantly better. Antonelli was on par with the Ferraris during his stint. There should still be something in it for him this weekend, especially since he didn’t put his qualifying lap together.
Russell, on the other hand, dropped off a little again compared to Antonelli and was in a pack with Norris and Verstappen, who drove similar times to the Briton. Normally, they should be fighting for positions behind the podium.
In the midfield, Audi seemed to be ahead of the competition this time, so Nico Hülkenberg should have realistic chances for the first points of the season.
What was going on with Antonelli?
13th place doesn’t exactly sound like a good result for the World Championship leader, who was almost a second behind his teammate. But that’s not realistic, of course, as shown by the fact that his fastest run came on the mediums. His qualifying run failed.
Initially, he was hampered by the red flag during his attempt, and when the session restarted, he had to skip the chicane – with the indication that his rear axle balance was not right. The Italian had already complained about this before, but measures in the pit seemed not to have led to a 100 percent solution.
“They now have to sit down calmly and make very clever decisions that improve the handling of the Mercedes,” says ex-driver Alexander Wurz on ORF. “There’s certainly more in it, that’s clear. But it’s not running as smoothly as Toto and the whole team might imagine.”
At Mercedes itself, however, they remain calm: the Ferrari times are “not alarming,” as deputy team principal Bradley Lord says, “but a really good target.” The Silver Arrows can put Antonelli’s missing time into perspective and find the long runs more encouraging. However, the fight for the best lap time has not yet been written off: “I hope we can fight for pole,” says Lord.
Why was there a red flag?
About half of the session had been completed when it had to be interrupted. Franco Colapinto had gone off in his Alpine in the last corner and crashed backwards into the barrier.
Colapinto had lost control of his car while braking for the corner. The Alpine spun and drove backwards towards the barrier, which it hit, damaging at least the rear wing. “I’m fine,” radioed the Argentinian, whose session was thus over.
“I lost the rear in the last section of the track and hit the tire wall with the rear of the car. Not a good day, not an ideal start,” Colapinto laments. “I also lost quite a bit of track time, so I’m trying to focus on the things we can learn and improve for tomorrow.”
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Bad luck for him: Since he had given his car to Paul Aron in the first practice session, he didn’t get much driving on Friday. “Of course, we don’t have much data, but I think we can still work on it and try to get the car into a better operating window for tomorrow,” said the Argentinian.
After about six minutes of break, the rest of the drivers could continue.
Why were only 21 drivers present?
One driver could not participate in the second free practice session: Lance Stroll. For Aston Martin, the time between sessions was not enough to repair the car after the incident in the first session.
There, the left rear suspension of the AMR26 suddenly collapsed and sent Stroll into a spin. Although he didn’t hit anything, his car was not ready in time.
How good is Aston Martin’s new package?
Aston Martin’s big upgrade was eagerly awaited, but essentially only Fernando Alonso was able to collect real data – and it was quite encouraging. “Yes, it felt good,” explains Alonso, who had finished 13th in 1st Free Practice and 19th in 2nd Practice.
“I think, in general, in terms of numbers and correlation, we had what we expected, which is of course very encouraging for the future – for next year’s car and the future upgrades this year.”
“It’s still a long way for us, of course, after starting so far back, but hopefully this is the first of many good steps to come,” said the two-time world champion.
Whether Aston Martin can now fight for a place in Q2 remains a big question for now – but after the team has spent most of the season behind Cadillac, it seems to have at least closed that gap, if not overtaken them.
“They are definitely in the game,” says Sergio Perez on Friday evening. “They were very strong today. The race pace also looked very strong, so I think they will be hard to beat this weekend.”
How was Nico Hülkenberg’s Friday?
Positive. After finishing eighth in the first practice session, he also managed to move into the top 10 in ninth place in the late afternoon. “It was a pretty straightforward Friday,” he says. “We worked through the different tire compounds, learned a bit more about the balance, and made some progress with the setup between the two sessions.”
“Overall, I would say it was a decent day. As expected, the midfield is incredibly close again, so every little detail will make a difference tomorrow. Everything is still possible, and we will try to put everything together in qualifying.”
The first points of the season seem to be well within reach.
What’s next at the Hungarian Grand Prix 2026
Formula 1 Saturday (July 25) in Budapest begins at 12:30 PM with the third and final free practice session. Qualifying for Sunday’s race follows at 4 PM. Kevin Scheuren and Kevin Hermann will report from 9 PM in the YouTube livestream and discuss all important topics regarding qualifying.
On Sunday (July 26), the race start at the Hungaroring is scheduled for 3 PM. At 9 PM, Kevin Scheuren and Kevin Hermann will start their Grand Prix analysis. As always, channel members can ask their questions live.
For all information on streams and TV broadcasts in Germany, Austria, and Switzerland, please refer to our current overview. Details on the weather forecast can be found in our preview.
First, the summer break is now approaching, before the race in Zandvoort continues in four weeks at the end of August. (See the 2026 race calendar here!)
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