Max Verstappen gathered a 1m16.547s on softs shortly after Lance Stroll went to the top of the times, before the Dutchman's lap was then overcome by Charles Leclerc's 1m16.406s. The Monegasque's spell at the top was short as George Russell went 0.094s faster, but Oscar Piastri then rounded his first soft-tyre lap with a 1m16.240s.

Lando Norris drew first blood at the Hungarian Grand Prix weekend, headlining Formula 1's opening free practice session by a scant 0.019s over championship leader Oscar Piastri.

The Hungaroring is hosting round 14 of the 2025 Formula One world championship with the Hungarian Grand Prix weekend — and it is McLaren looking the dominant force. It was just five days ago that Oscar Piastri overtook McLaren teammate Lando Norris to claim victory in Belgium and extend his drivers’ championship lead to 16 points.