Antonelli tops wet-to-dry FP1 as Mercedes, Ferrari and McLaren set the pace ahead of Sprint Qualifying

FP1 classification

Kimi Antonelli finished fastest in Free Practice 1 ahead of the Dutch Grand Prix, the Mercedes driver beating McLaren's Lando Norris and team mate George Russell. The Italian posted a 1m 12.949s, which left him just one-tenth clear of both Norris and Russell at the Zandvoort Circuit. ^[1]

The complete top ten:

1. Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes) 1m12.949s ^[1] 2. Lando Norris (McLaren) +0.121s ^[2] 3. George Russell (Mercedes) +0.125s ^[2] 4. Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari) +0.190s ^[2] 5. Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) +0.289s ^[2] 6. Oscar Piastri (McLaren) +0.659s ^[2] 7. Nico Hulkenberg (Audi) +0.835s ^[2] 8. Pierre Gasly (Alpine) +0.962s ^[2] 9. Gabriel Bortoleto (Audi) +1.043s ^[2] 10. Arvid Lindblad (Racing Bulls) +1.336s ^[2]

Max Verstappen was only 11th ^[3] in what was described as a poor session for Red Bull, with Liam Lawson finishing 14th as a fill-in for Isack Hadjar who will miss the Dutch Grand Prix after suffering a wrist injury. ^[3]

Track conditions and notable incidents

Conditions were far from optimal, with the track having been declared wet as damp patches remained scattered around the circuit. Carlos Sainz recovered back to the pits after running wide and into the gravel at Turn 13. ^[1] Sainz twice ran through the gravel at Turn 11 during the opening half of the session, with Williams later discovering floor damage which significantly compromised the remainder of his running. ^[4] The damage to the floor was estimated by his engineer to result in a loss of 20 points of aerodynamic efficiency. ^[5]

Just before the halfway point, Antonelli suffered a spin on the exit of Turn 10, explaining over the radio "I don't know what happened there", before recovering unharmed after showcasing the lack of track grip. ^[1] Antonelli had a spin, but remained on the tarmac, completing a satisfying 360-degree pirouette in a relatively quiet session. ^[3]

Numerous drivers had off-track moments, kicking up gravel onto the circuit, including Carlos Sainz, Max Verstappen and Hamilton. ^[3] No red flags were shown; the session ran its full 60 minutes under a flag yellow zone during Sainz's excursions.

Rookie and stand-in FP1 outings

This session included two mandatory FP1 outings for drivers new to the 2026 machinery. A Sprint weekend, it marked the only free running teams and drivers will get, an hour of particular importance for Liam Lawson and Yuki Tsunoda. Driving in place of Isack Hadjar at Red Bull this weekend, Lawson was an encouraging 14th, just six tenths off the pace of Max Verstappen in the sister car. ^[6]

Tsunoda's F1 return got off to a promising start, eight tenths slower than Racing Bulls stablemate Arvid Lindblad to end the session in 17th. ^[6] Liam Lawson impressed on his return to Red Bull, quickly on the pace and looking comfortable in the cockpit of the RB22. ^[3]

Practice indicative, not predictive

With only a single hour of practice ahead of Sprint Qualifying later on Friday afternoon, teams and drivers immediately headed out once the session got underway at 1230 local time to gather valuable data. But conditions were far from optimal, with the track having been declared wet as damp patches remained scattered around the circuit, and the early runners ventured out on the intermediate tyre. After only several laps, though, drivers soon switched to Pirelli's slick rubber and times began to plummet as the track continued to dry. ^[1]

Formula1.com FP1 report, accessed August 21, 2026 The-Race full classification, accessed August 21, 2026 RacingNews365 FP1 results, accessed August 21, 2026 Speedcafe FP1 analysis, accessed August 21, 2026 Autohebdof1 FP1 report, accessed August 21, 2026 PlanetF1 Dutch GP FP1 results, accessed August 21, 2026