Lando Norris topped the opening practice session for the 2025 FIA Formula 1 Hungarian Grand Prix, beating championship-leading McLaren team-mate Oscar Piastri by just 0.019s as Charles Leclerc took third place for Ferrari, a little over two tenths of a second adrift of top spot. 

One of the first out on track at the start of the session was Aston Martin’s Felipe Drugovich. The Brazilian test driver was stepping in for Fernando Alonso who was sitting out the session due to a muscle problem in his back. 

It was championship leader Oscar Piastri who set the early pace, however, with the McLaren driver using Medium tyres to set a benchmark of 1:18.249. 

After 10 minutes Piastri’s title rival team-mate Lando Norris jumped six tenths of a second ahead of that time with a lap of 1:17.631 and Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc slotted into second four tenths off the Briton.

Piastri was dialling himself into the track conditions, however, and with 15 minutes on the clock he moved up to second place 0.248s off Norris. Red Bull’s Max Verstappen also moved up the timesheet, taking fourth place on Medium tyres with a lap of 1:18.194, half a second back from Norris. 

As running increased, track evolution ramped up strongly and with 20 minutes gone, Williams Alex Albon vaulted to P2 with a Medium-tyre time of 1:17.866. Norris was back out on track on Mediums, however, and the Briton went a full second quicker than the Thai driver to return to top spot on 1:16.837. 

Leclerc posted a 1:17.420 to take P2, half a second adrift of Norris and Carlos Sainz put the other Williams third, 0.9s off the P1 pace. 

Just past the halfway mark, Alpine’s Franco Colapinto bolted on Soft tyres and he jumped from the bottom end of the order to sixth place with a time of 1:17.959. 

Leclerc then made the same tyre choice and he took P1 on 1:16.791, a little over four hundredths of a second clear of Norris’ best Medium time. As Albon took third on the red-banded tyres ahead of the similarly shod Hamilton, Norris joined the C5 party and he roared back to the top of the timesheet with a lap of 1:16.052, seven tenths of a second ahead of Leclerc. Piastri couldn’t match that time and the Australian slotted into second place with a lap of 1:16.194. He went again, however, and on his second attempt improved by just over a tenth of second to sit 0.019s off his team-mate. 

With the Soft tyre runs complete, the field returned to harder compounds and longer runs in the final third of the session and that mean that behind the top three of Norris, Piastri and Leclerc, Racing Bulls’ Isack Hadjar impressed with fourth place and a time of 1:16.681, 0.629 behind Norris. 

Hamilton was left with P5, half a tenth off Hadjar, with Haas’ Ollie Bearman in sixth ahead of Mercedes’ Kimi Antonelli and George Russell. Max Verstappen slipped to ninth as the Soft runs unfolded and the top 10 was rounded out by Aston Martin’s Lance Stroll. 

Further back, Drugovich put the other Aston in 16th place, while Paul Aron, the other test driver taking part was able to complete just nine laps before a technical issue with Nico Hülkenberg’s Kick Sauber ruled him out of the session. 

2025 FIA Formula 1 Hungarian Grand Prix – Free Practice 1 
1 Lando Norris McLaren/Mercedes 1:16.052 26 207.379
2 Oscar Piastri McLaren/Mercedes 1:16.071 0.019 30 207.327
3 Charles Leclerc Ferrari 1:16.269 0.217 28 206.789
4 Isack Hadjar Racing Bulls/Honda RBPT 1:16.681 0.629 31 205.678
5 Lewis Hamilton Ferrari 1:16.734 0.682 28 205.536
6 Oliver Bearman Haas/Ferrari 1:16.878 0.826 26 205.151
7 Kimi Antonelli Mercedes 1:16.880 0.828 26 205.145
8 George Russell Mercedes 1:16.925 0.873 26 205.025
9 Max Verstappen Red Bull/Honda RBPT 1:16.940 0.888 25 204.985
10 Lance Stroll Aston Martin/Mercedes 1:16.958 0.906 25 204.937
11 Alexander Albon Williams/Mercedes 1:16.984 0.932 28 204.868
12 Esteban Ocon Haas/Ferrari 1:17.004 0.952 26 204.815
13 Pierre Gasly Alpine/Renault 1:17.123 1.071 27 204.499
14 Liam Lawson Racing Bulls/Honda RBPT 1:17.184 1.132 29 204.337
15 Carlos Sainz Williams/Mercedes 1:17.195 1.143 31 204.308
16 Felipe Drugovich Aston Martin/Mercedes 1:17.269 1.217 26 204.112
17 Yuki Tsunoda Red Bull/Honda RBPT 1:17.393 1.341 27 203.785
18 Franco Colapinto Alpine/Renault 1:17.464 1.412 29 203.599
19 Gabriel Bortoleto Sauber/Ferrari 1:17.652 1.600 17 203.106
20 Paul Aron Sauber/Ferrari 1:19.788 3.736 9 197.668