(Motorsport-Total.com) – After his Friday best time in Monza, George Russell continued on Saturday and also secured first place in the third Free Practice for the 2026 Italian Grand Prix. In the last session before qualifying, he completed his fastest lap in 1:22.219 minutes, pushing Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari/+0.226) and Max Verstappen (Red Bull/+0.350) into second and third places.
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The most explosive scene came at the very end of the session when Hamilton and Verstappen engaged in an acceleration duel at the start/finish line, which initially seemed to favor Hamilton. But Verstappen forced his way later into the first corner. “He caused that,” Verstappen immediately radioed, while Hamilton said: “I was blocked by Max.”
ServusTV expert Mathias Lauda assesses the duel between the two old rivals as follows: “I think it’s a mix of Max being bored because it’s Free Practice – and he was already held up by a Ferrari on his fast lap. I think it was a bit of a revenge.” A penalty from the FIA could be “saved,” because: “It’s nice to see something like this.”
Under hot conditions (53 degrees asphalt and 32 degrees air temperature), the Mercedes drivers stamped their mark on the practice from the start. At times, Kimi Antonelli also led despite a driving error in the Alboreto corner (formerly Parabolica). Later, the Italian improved to 1:22.580 minutes. However, this remained above Russell’s reference mark, placing him fourth.
Important for context: Antonelli is focusing more on race preparation than qualifying because, due to a tactical engine change and the resulting grid penalty at his home race, he cannot start from pole anyway.
Russell, likely the declared pole favorite after two best times in practice, had the favor of the FIA stewards in the final practice when a situation involving obstruction of Oscar Piastri (McLaren) was reported. The stewards quickly ruled: no investigation necessary. Piastri remained calm after the incident and improved to eighth place (+0.554) as the checkered flag fell.
On the topic:
Result: 3rd Free Practice Italian GP
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McLaren in Monza without a chance for pole?
McLaren is currently only the third force behind Mercedes and Ferrari in Monza. Lando Norris took fifth place with a 0.406-second deficit. “McLaren seems to be half a step behind,” says Bradley Lord, Mercedes’ deputy team principal, in an interview with ServusTV. “But they don’t always show everything, and they might come back in qualifying.”
Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) was sixth, ahead of Arvid Lindblad (Racing Bulls), Piastri, Pierre Gasly, and Franco Colapinto (both Alpine). Nico Hülkenberg, the only German in the current Formula 1 starting field, was eleventh with a 0.907-second deficit and was thus 0.172 seconds faster than his Audi teammate Gabriel Bortoleto (13th).
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Before qualifying: Will there be slipstream games?
In qualifying in the afternoon, it may not only be about mastering the corners as best as possible. Already in free practice, it has been shown that a good slipstream can mean an enormous time advantage. This has so far been quantified as three to four tenths of a second per lap.
Drivers will certainly try to slipstream behind other cars. One or the other team might also try internally to support their number 1. At Mercedes, this is a topic because Antonelli will be moved back on the grid anyway. And Liam Lawson (12th/+0.984) has also announced that he might drive for Verstappen internally at Red Bull in qualifying.
At McLaren and Ferrari, the situation regarding internal slipstreaming is more diffuse. Ferrari team principal Frederic Vasseur already said on Friday evening: “We have two cars, and I want to give both equal chances. If you have a car at the back anyway, like Red Bull with Hadjar in Spa, then that’s clever. But I prefer to have two fast cars.”
Formula 1 Monza schedule: What’s next?
After the F1 sprint in Zandvoort, Monza is again a classic Grand Prix weekend in the traditional format. This means that on Saturday there is a normal schedule with classic qualifying. The fight for starting positions begins at 16:00 CEST.
The race start on Sunday is scheduled for 15:00. The race weekend in Monza will be broadcast on TV on Sky (Germany), ServusTV (Austria), and SRF (Switzerland) (Here is the complete TV overview for Formula 1 in Monza!).
Fans can follow the usual Formula 1 live streams on the YouTube channel of Formel1.de on Saturday and Sunday evenings. With a summary of the events and analyses well beyond the end of the TV broadcasts. Host Kevin Scheuren presents the streams again with editor-in-chief Christian Nimmervoll as expert.
The provisional start time of the live streams on Saturday and Sunday is set for 21:00 CEST. (Here is the Formula 1 calendar 2026!)
Reload page: This practice report is continuously updated. Only when this notice disappears are no further updates planned.
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