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F1 Results Today: George Russell Leads Italian Grand Prix Practice as Ferrari and McLaren Impress at…

George Russell emerged as the fastest driver in second practice for the 2026 Italian Grand Prix, as Mercedes responded strongly to Ferrari’s dominant opening session at Monza.

Ferrari had made an impressive start to its home weekend in FP1, with Charles Leclerc setting the pace ahead of teammate Lewis Hamilton. However, Mercedes turned the tables in FP2, with Russell recording a fastest lap of 1:22.559s to finish at the top of the timesheets.

Leclerc remained close behind, just 0.120 seconds off the Mercedes driver, while Kimi Antonelli completed the top three. Lando Norris was fourth for McLaren, followed by Hamilton and Oscar Piastri.

The result suggests that Mercedes and McLaren could be serious contenders throughout the weekend, despite Ferrari making the stronger initial impression in FP1.

Italian Grand Prix FP2 Results

1. George Russell — Mercedes — 1:22.559s

2. Charles Leclerc — Ferrari — +0.120s

3. Kimi Antonelli — Mercedes — +0.141s

4. Lando Norris — McLaren — +0.384s

5. Lewis Hamilton — Ferrari — +0.457s

6. Oscar Piastri — McLaren — +0.469s

7. Arvid Lindblad — Racing Bulls — +0.790s

8. Oliver Bearman — Haas — +0.811s

9. Max Verstappen — Red Bull — +0.818s

10. Yuki Tsunoda — Racing Bulls — +0.896s

11. Franco Colapinto — Alpine — +1.060s

12. Liam Lawson — Red Bull — +1.101s

13. Nico Hülkenberg — Audi — +1.173s

14. Pierre Gasly — Alpine — +1.214s

15. Gabriel Bortoleto — Audi — +1.217s

16. Alex Albon — Williams — +1.294s

17. Carlos Sainz — Williams — +1.341s

18. Esteban Ocon — Haas — +1.848s

19. Fernando Alonso — Aston Martin — +2.468s

20. Sergio Perez — Cadillac — +2.523s

21. Valtteri Bottas — Cadillac — +2.590s

22. Lance Stroll — Aston Martin — +2.694s

Ferrari Starts Strong in FP1

Leclerc had set the benchmark during the opening practice session, posting a 1:23.008s lap to finish 0.173 seconds ahead of Hamilton.

Russell was third, with Liam Lawson fourth for Red Bull. Antonelli and Norris completed the top six, while Piastri finished 11th.

The contrasting results between the two sessions highlight how difficult it is to judge the competitive order at this stage of the weekend, with teams likely experimenting with different engine modes, fuel loads and tyre strategies.

Driver Changes and Early Drama

Friday’s FP1 session also featured several temporary driver changes. Liam Lawson took the place of Isack Hadjar, while Yuki Tsunoda moved into Lawson’s Racing Bulls seat.

Other substitutions saw Ayumu Iwasa drive for Max Verstappen, Paul Aron replace Pierre Gasly, Luke Browning take over Alex Albon’s Williams and Colton Herta step into Sergio Perez’s Cadillac.

Most of the replacements enjoyed relatively uneventful sessions, but Herta suffered a particularly difficult start to his day.

His Cadillac developed a hydraulic problem less than 15 minutes into FP1, forcing him to stop at the side of the circuit and briefly bringing out the red flags.

The incident added to a frustrating day for the American, who had earlier been involved in a crash during F2 practice at Monza.

FP3 Next at Monza

Attention now turns to Saturday’s final practice session, with FP3 scheduled for 12:30 local time (11:30 BST).

With Russell topping FP2, Ferrari showing strong pace in FP1 and both McLarens inside the top six in the second session, the battle for pole position at Monza is already shaping up to be closely contested.