Practice 1 Report - Hamilton leads Silverstone practice

Lewis Hamilton
© Ferrari

Lewis Hamilton delighted the home crowd by setting the fastest time in Formula 1’s only practice session for the British Grand Prix, edging championship leader Kimi Antonelli as teams prepared for sprint qualifying at Silverstone.

With just a single hour of running available before the sprint format began, every team wasted little time leaving the pitlane. Most opted to start on the hard compound as they worked through aggressive run plans, with the hot 49C track surface evolving rapidly as fuel loads came down and rubber was laid down on the circuit.

The lead changed hands repeatedly during the opening half of the session before Antonelli established himself at the top with a 1m30.777s, putting the Mercedes driver 0.192s clear of Isack Hadjar and 0.209s ahead of team-mate George Russell.

Power-sensitive Silverstone had already become a major talking point following discussions surrounding Formula 1’s Additional Development and Upgrade Opportunities (ADUO) calculations, and the early order appeared to favour Mercedes and Red Bull. Even so, the lap times remained around four seconds slower than the equivalent 2025 benchmark as teams continued adapting to the revised power unit characteristics.

Hamilton soon demonstrated Ferrari’s potential by recording a 1m30.521s on the hard tyre before the session was briefly interrupted by a spin for Oscar Piastri between Becketts and Chapel with around 25 minutes remaining. The Australian avoided damage and was able to continue.

The decisive runs came during the closing stages as teams switched to soft tyres. Antonelli became the first driver below the 1m30s barrier with a 1m29.473s, but Hamilton responded moments later with a 1m29.260s that remained unbeaten. Antonelli stayed in the garage during the final minutes and could not respond.

Charles Leclerc improved late to secure third with a 1m29.859s, narrowly ahead of Russell on 1m29.938s. Piastri completed the top five with a 1m30.147s, followed by Max Verstappen on 1m30.240s and Lando Norris on 1m30.288s. Hadjar finished eighth on 1m30.338s.

Audi enjoyed an encouraging session as Nico Hulkenberg was ninth with a 1m30.743s on the medium tyre, ahead of Liam Lawson’s Racing Bull on 1m30.850s. Franco Colapinto, Gabriel Bortoleto, Arvid Lindblad, Oliver Bearman, Carlos Sainz, Esteban Ocon, Alex Albon, Valtteri Bottas, Sergio Perez, Fernando Alonso, Pierre Gasly and Lance Stroll completed the order.