During the first free practice for the Dutch GP, Kimi Antonelli continues his strong campaign towards the title. The Italian sets the fastest time, followed by Lando Norris and George Russell. Max Verstappen struggles with the RB22 and only manages to reach eleventh place.
Read more Lando Norris points out McLaren’s Achilles’ heel: ‘We can still improve there’
On a drying track, the first free practice begins. Due to the sprint format this weekend, it is also the only free practice. And because it is the very last edition of the Dutch GP, this is also the last free practice of Formula 1 at the Zandvoort circuit.
Due to Isack Hadjar’s wrist injury, there are some internal shifts within the Red Bull ranks. Liam Lawson takes a seat in the Red Bull RB22 and Yuki Tsunoda makes his return to Racing Bulls. For them, it is crucial to get familiar with the car as quickly as possible, because in the next session, the sprint qualifying, they must perform immediately.
Nico Hülkenberg is the first to set a time. On the intermediate tires, he records a 1:26.555. Lewis Hamilton goes a second faster. But Oscar Piastri thinks the track is dry enough and makes an attempt on the medium slicks. The McLaren driver is right and goes more than two seconds under the seven-time world champion’s time.
The track dries quickly and World Championship leader Kimi Antonelli sets a 1:18.264, although this is still about ten seconds slower than last year’s lap record. Slowly but surely, the times come down. After half an hour, both Ferraris are at the front, followed by the Mercedes duo. Best of the rest is Max Verstappen in P5.
Not all drivers are confident in the car. Carlos Sainz goes into the gravel trap but can continue. The same goes for Max Verstappen. Antonelli even spins once, but he also gets away unscathed.
Aston Martin, this weekend equipped with a renewed Honda power unit, hopes to make another step forward in the rankings. Fernando Alonso, with his eleventh time, almost breaks into the top ten, so the first signs of recovery for the troubled team are visible.
When the time expires in this session, Antonelli has recorded the fastest time, ahead of Norris and teammate Russell. Max Verstappen remains stuck in P11.
Read more Result first free practice (FP1) GP Netherlands 2026
Read everything about the Dutch GP in Zandvoort here
