P1racenews AI automatic summary:
The headline laptimes didn’t show it, but Friday practice in Australia justified Mercedes and George Russell’s tags as title favourites
The headline laptimes didn’t reflect it, but Friday practice in Australia confirmed Mercedes and George Russell as title favorites. The new 2026 cars posed energy management challenges, setting aerodynamics and mechanical aspects aside. Charles Leclerc led FP1, with Russell 1.1 seconds behind due to Mercedes’ issues. Oscar Piastri topped FP2, with a close second by Kimi Antonelli.
The order aligned somewhat with testing impressions, except Mercedes wasn’t on top and Alpine underperformed. Single-lap pace standings saw McLaren fastest, followed closely by Mercedes and Ferrari. The lap times in Australia highlighted the energy regime optimizations needed for the 2026 cars.
Pacesetter Piastri showcased strategic conservation in corners to manage energy efficiently. The race pace advantage seemed to favor Mercedes over Ferrari. Limited data due to messy sessions left uncertainties, but Mercedes appeared strong on long runs. Russell’s 11-lap average on hard tires was quicker than most, showing Mercedes’ potential.
