2025 Emilia Romagna GP FP1: Piastri fastest in Italy

The European leg of the 2025 F1 season kicked off in style at Imola with a frantic and closely contested opening practice session — and it was Oscar Piastri who emerged on top. The McLaren driver, fresh off a string of dominant performances, carried his momentum into the 2025 Emilia Romagna Grand Prix weekend by setting the fastest time in FP1, narrowly edging out team-mate Lando Norris in a McLaren 1-2 that underlined the team’s continued form at the front of the pack.

Piastri’s benchmark of 1:16.545 was just 0.032s quicker than Norris, with less than a tenth separating the top four as Williams’ Carlos Sainz, Mercedes’ George Russell, and Ferrari’s Lewis Hamilton all slotted in close behind. It was a session that set the tone for what promises to be a tightly fought weekend — and a crucial one too, as the paddock headed into a triple-header and a key development window of the season.

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Imola, returning as the traditional launchpad for in-season upgrades, saw teams arrive with visible changes to their cars. Red Bull debuted updates to their engine cover and sidepods, but Max Verstappen was visibly frustrated with the balance of the RB20, struggling particularly with the rear end and finishing seventh. The reigning champion’s session included a dramatic slide and some testy team radio, capped by a thump of the steering wheel in frustration.

Elsewhere, the session was rich with storylines. Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc, back behind the wheel after missing media day due to illness, had an eventful run — almost colliding with Fernando Alonso early on and later dipping a wheel into the gravel at Turn 15. Meanwhile, home favourite Kimi Antonelli showed strong pace early on in front of his local crowd, while Franco Colapinto made his F1 weekend debut for Alpine, stepping in for Jack Doohan for the next five rounds.

The new C6 compound made its race weekend debut as well, with most of the field sampling the softest tyre in Pirelli’s 2025 range for the first time. The tyre, designed for low-degradation tracks like Imola, would be closely analysed for future use later in the season, particularly after Monaco and Montreal.

The final minutes of FP1 were cut short after Gabriel Bortoleto crashed heavily at Turn 18, bringing out red flags and freezing the order. The Kick Sauber rookie had run aggressively over the kerbs before slamming into the barriers — ending the session prematurely and adding an extra repair job to the team’s already busy weekend.

Behind the McLarens, Sainz, Russell, and Hamilton rounded out the top five. Pierre Gasly brought his Alpine into sixth, just ahead of Verstappen, with Alex Albon, Bortoleto, and Nico Hulkenberg completing the top 10. Lance Stroll finished just outside the top ten for Aston Martin, while Leclerc languished down in P12 after his disrupted run. Antonelli, Alonso, and Lawson followed, with Yuki Tsunoda in P16 and Colapinto in P17. The Haas duo of Ollie Bearman and Esteban Ocon were split by Racing Bulls’ Isack Hadjar at the tail end of the timesheets.

2025 Emilia Romagna GP FP1 Results

2025 Emilia Romagna Prix FP1, 16 May 2025