Very cloudy weather but lighter rain than in the past days in this start to the Imola weekend, which sees a Ferrari once again in the lead, and not by a small amount, as the F1-75 seems to behave exceptionally even in the wet. First time for Leclerc who prints a 1:29.402 with an intermediate tire, after being the protagonist of numerous track exits and spins to try to find the ultimate limit in the car-rain combination; followed by teammate Carlos Sainz who signs a 1:30.279, fresh from his contract and with a new Power Unit for precautionary reasons, due to anomalies found on PU number 1 after the post-Australian Grand Prix checks. Max Verstappen's Red Bull was very far away, almost a second and a half behind the Monegasque (1:30.867), also thanks to traffic incidents that made it difficult for the Dutchman to finish a clean lap. Red Bull brought an update to the tea-tray area, copying the Aston Martin double splitter, just as Ferrari did.
Haas is back 'close' to the top of the standings, with Magnussen and Schumacher respectively fourth and fifth, confirming the excellent work done this year by the technicians of the American team. Sergio Perez and Fernando Alonso follow, the latter mounting a new fund that will also be available for teammate Esteban Ocon (13th, also with a new PU) starting from the next race. Vettel, Tsunoda and Russel close the top 10.
Many difficulties at Mercedes, with Lewis Hamilton only 18th to seven seconds from the first position, and Russell five. The seven-time world champion complained a lot via team radio that he didn't have grip, thanks to the difficulty of getting the wet tires up to temperature. We remind you that this year it is more difficult to send the tires in the optimal window of use due to the decrease in the temperature of the tyrewarmers.
McLaren is once again in evident difficulty after the positive Australian weekend, finishing in 14th and 15th position, with Norris ahead of Ricciardo.
Out of the top 10 also Bottas who is 11th, protagonist of a track exit at the end of the session to mineral waters; his teammate Guanyu Zhou is 19th while Gasly's AlphaTauri is 12th.
Many difficulties at Aston Martin and Williams: Stroll 16th, Albon 17th and Latifi last.