Scuderia Ferrari HP got through its planned programme in Friday's free practice sessions for the Australian Grand Prix, the opening round of the 2026 Formula 1 World Championship.

At the Albert Park Circuit the team worked on fine-tuning the SF-26, trying several set-up configurations on a track that continued to evolve throughout the day. Over the course of the sessions all available Pirelli tyre compounds were evaluated, gathering data in qualifying trim and in race simulation. In the first session Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton set the fastest and second-fastest times respectively, while in the afternoon session they finished fourth and fifth.

In the morning Charles and Lewis started off on Medium tyres, posting times of 1'21"698 and 1'21"227 respectively, each completing 16 laps. Midway through the session the drivers switched to the Soft compound with Leclerc getting down to 1'20"267, while Hamilton improved to 1'20"736. In the closing stages Lewis did a longer run, on the Medium tyres used at the start of the session. Charles completed 33 laps in total, while Lewis did 30, for a team total of 63.

Lewis and Charles started the second session on Hard tyres, thus completing the evaluation of the three compounds available this weekend. Hamilton lapped in 1'20"637, Leclerc in 1'21"478. The pair then switched to the Soft compound, with the Briton setting his best time of 1'20"050 and Charles posting a 1'20"291. In the final minutes both cars went for a longer run on the Hard tyres used at the start of the session. Lewis completed 32 laps in total, two fewer than Charles, for a team total of 64.

Lewis Hamilton: It's been a really good day. It's great to be back on track and properly get going. It's amazing to be here. I feel incredibly grateful to be able to do what I love and it's incredible to see so many fans here today. It was challenging at times on track, but we maximised our laps and executed to the best of our ability, getting some good information. Lots of work to do but I'm looking forward to getting back in the car tomorrow.

Charles Leclerc: It was a positive start to the weekend. FP1 was solid, and we tried a different set-up in FP2 that didn't pay off but was a good learning. Little by little, we are starting to see all teams revealing their true form and I think that there is more to come, especially in the race. I think it will be quite close in qualifying tomorrow and we will work hard to put ourselves in the best condition tonight.

Check out our Friday gallery from Melbourne here.