The Ferrari driver set the benchmark time of 1m18.380s to pip the Mercedes of Kimi Antonelli by 0.107s and the Sauber of Nico Hulkenberg by 0.380s, in a session that ran cleanly despite the high number of inexperienced drivers on the circuit.

With nine of the ten teams opting to use rookies as part of Formula 1’s mandatory young driver rules, several big names sat out the session, including championship contenders Max Verstappen and Lando Norris.

Oscar Piastri was the only member of the contending trio to take part in FP1, with the Australian finishing the session in fourth place, four tenths behind Leclerc’s best and one spot ahead of the second Sauber of Gabriel Bortoleto.

The 24-year-old had a slight moment going into Turn 9 towards the end of the session, sliding off track before recovering through a cloud of dust to rejoin the circuit.

He was joined by Isack Hadjar and Franco Colapinto as the only drivers to have notable moments, with both also having minor offs during the session, though all nine rookies ultimately completed FP1 without incident.

Eight of the nine rookies filled the bottom eight positions, with Arvid Linblad the only exception, finishing an impressive sixth.

The British driver laid down a firm marker in his bid for a 2026 Racing Bulls seat, setting a time just six tenths off Leclerc’s benchmark.

Linblad finished seven spots ahead of the next-best rookie, Pat O’Ward for McLaren, and one tenth clear of regular Red Bull driver Yuki Tsunoda, who ended the session in eighth.

Another intriguing on-track battle between drivers vying for a 2026 seat unfolded at Alpine, with Franco Colapinto coming out on top over Paul Aron. The Argentinian ended the session ninth, half a second clear of the Estonian, who finished 15th.

Esteban Ocon was seventh for Haas, while Alex Albon rounded out the top ten for Williams, finishing ahead of the only two other full-time drivers to take part in FP1, Hadjar and Fernando Alonso.

Frederik Vesti was just behind O’Ward in 14th place, while Ryo Hirakawa took 16th for Haas ahead of Ayumu Iwasa for Racing Bulls, Luke Browning for Williams, Jak Crawford for Aston Martin and Antonio Fuoco for Ferrari, bookending the timesheets with a red car at both the top and bottom.

Cars return to the track for FP2 at 4pm local time (9am AEDT).