Max fifth in first free practice in Madrid

Published on 11 September 2026 by Misha van der Kroon

Formula 1 has made its debut at the Madring, with the first free practice session of the Spanish Grand Prix in Madrid completed almost without any problems. George Russell set the fastest time in his Mercedes, ahead of his teammate Kimi Antonelli. Both Ferraris followed, ahead of Max Verstappen in fifth place.

The 22 Formula 1 drivers are let loose on the brand-new Madring for the very first time, a challenging street circuit where keeping the car out of the wall appears to be an art in itself. As everyone gets to know the track better with every lap and the pace continues to increase. Both Ferraris immediately top the timing sheets, with Lewis Hamilton leading the way. After the first fifteen minutes of FP1, Max is in third, three tenths off the pace.

Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes) and Liam Lawson (Red Bull Racing) are the first drivers to try the softest compound, moving into P3 and P4 respectively. Not long afterwards, Arvid Lindblad (Racing Bulls) goes fifth on the softs, before George Russell (Mercedes) and then Antonelli move into P3 on the soft tyre. They get within hundredths of the Ferraris, who set their times earlier in the session on the medium compound.

With fifteen minutes remaining, Max also switches to the soft tyres. At that point, Russell is in P1 with a 1:34.077, while Antonelli moves into P2. Verstappen improves to fifth with a 1:34.703. Hamilton is no quicker on the softs than he was on the mediums, raising a few eyebrows. Leclerc is marginally faster and moves into P3. There is barely any further improvement in the final minutes, bringing the first free practice session to an end after an almost flawless run.

Results first free practice Spain: