Leclerc commands at home and Sainz starts third in Free Practice 1 in Monaco

MADRID, 27 May. (EUROPA PRESS) -

The Monegasque driver Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) has dominated the first free practice session on Friday at the Monaco Grand Prix, the seventh round of the Formula 1 World Championship, a first contact in which the Spanish Carlos Sainz (Ferrari) has seven hundredths behind his teammate, third, and in which Fernando Alonso (Alpine) could only be thirteenth.

Leclerc, who is looking for his country to return to the leadership of the championship, commanded the first round in the Principality, which for the first time will hold its first two sessions on Friday, ending the traditional day off for the drivers in Monte Carlo.

Thus, the second in the World Cup set a time of 1:14.531 that allowed him to beat the Mexican Sergio Pérez (Red Bull) and Sainz, with the three drivers in less than a tenth with medium tires. 'Checo', at three hundredths, and the man from Madrid, at seven, threatened to take away the privileged position.

The leader of the drivers' general classification, the Dutchman Max Verstappen (Red Bull), started the event fourth, just ahead of the British Lando Norris (McLaren), who has shown the good pace of the McLarens commanding during specific moments of the session and finishing fifth.

The local rider set, through the streets of home, the first great reference time of the session, in which Max Verstappen (Red Bull) and Lando Norris (McLaren) were behind him. While drivers like Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes) complained about 'porposing' problems, Sainz rose to first place by just one thousandth of a difference.

However, the Monegasque regained the privileged position in the time table shortly after, just before training had to be stopped due to a red flag caused by Mick Schumacher's (Haas) car, whose breakdown caused him to stop at the entrance of the 'pitlane'.

Once activity resumed on the track and on a medium tyre, Norris climbed to the top, but his lead was short-lived as Verstappen emerged with a purple stain on every split. In the final stretch, Leclerc took the lead again with a 1:14.531 that no one was able to beat.

Meanwhile, the Asturian Fernando Alonso (Alpine) started in the Principality with a twelfth place with medium tires more than a second (1,218) from the head.