McLaren's Oscar Piastri topped FP2 at the 2026 Formula 1 Australian Grand Prix with a 1:19.729s lap, ahead of Mercedes' Kimi Antonelli and George Russell. Teams grappled with energy management under new rules at Albert Park, Aston Martin hit by battery woes, while Ferrari led FP1 but voiced concerns over Mercedes' pace.
The opening practices at Melbourne's Albert Park exposed the demands of F1's 2026 technical regulations, especially energy harvesting on the re-profiled track's long straights and limited braking zones. Drivers resorted to super clipping and lift-and-coast tactics, prompting FIA intervention to cap recoverable energy at 7 MJ per lap in qualifying (down from 8.5 MJ) and 8 MJ in the race. A new five-second pre-start delay, tested in Bahrain, aims to aid turbo spool-up without the MGU-H.
In FP1, Ferrari secured a 1-2 with Charles Leclerc ahead of Lewis Hamilton, showing early promise. However, Leclerc expressed mixed feelings: “FP1 looked positive, but then FP2 I think the teams are showing little by little a bit more. Unfortunately, we seem to be on the back foot, especially compared to Mercedes, who seem to be very, very strong.” Mercedes impressed on high-fuel runs despite not topping sessions.
FP2 saw Piastri set the pace at 1:19.729s on softs, 0.214s ahead of Antonelli (1:19.943s) and 0.320s clear of Russell (1:20.049s). Hamilton was fourth (1:20.050s), Leclerc fifth (0.562s off), Red Bull's Max Verstappen sixth (1:20.366s, 0.637s back) after a 25-minute pit stop for a technical issue and a wide moment at Turn 10. McLaren's Lando Norris, limited in FP1 by a clutch problem, was seventh (1:20.794s), followed by Racing Bulls rookie Arvid Lindblad (eighth, 1:20.922s, top-eight in both sessions), Red Bull's Isack Hadjar (ninth, 1.212s off) and Haas' Esteban Ocon (1:21.179s).
Aston Martin suffered with Honda power unit reliability, managing just two working batteries and no spares; Fernando Alonso completed 18 laps in 20th (around 5s off), Lance Stroll 13 laps in 21st (6s back). Cadillac's Sergio Perez managed two laps before a sensor/hydraulics failure stopped him on track, triggering a virtual safety car. Williams' Carlos Sainz halted after 10 laps (17th). George Russell's session included a pitlane clash with Lindblad, a practice start probe, and gravel at Turn 3—echoed by Ferraris. Williams and Alpine also trailed with setup/reliability issues. Piastri called it 'pretty smooth' after fixing an FP1 power issue, noting: “There are just so many things to get to grips with. It’s very different to what we had last year.” His time beat Leclerc's FP1 best by 0.5s but was 3s off last year's FP2 pace.
Teams expect qualifying chaos from varying out-laps for energy/tyres, with Haas' Ayao Komatsu warning of “lots of potential for disaster.” McLaren's Rob Marshall added: “Getting these cars dialled in is difficult, and getting the energy management right is very tricky.”
