French GP 2022: FP1 - Leclerc on top, grid penalty for Sainz

The first practice session of the French Grand Prix weekend has been completed, with Charles Leclerc topping the timesheets, followed by Max Verstappen in P2 and Carlos Sainz in P3.

A sunny, very hot afternoon in Le Castellet, found all drivers completing their fastest laps on the soft compound, except for Nicholas Latifi (P20), who chose the medium tyre.

It was announced, mid-session, that Carlos Sainz, after getting his third PU of the 2022 season, will receive a 10-place grid penalty, following his fiery engine-related incident, and will therefore start the French Grand Prix from the back of the grid.

A 1-3 for Ferrari, with Charles Leclerc leading Carlos Sainz, with the pair being splitted by Max Verstappen in P2. George Russell, 'Mr Consistency' in P4, followed by Pierre Gasly in P5, who reported some engine issues in the beginning of the session, with the team identifying and resolving the problem, and Sergio Perez in P6.

Lando Norris, who is currently under investigation for "allegedly failing to follow race director's instructions", presumably related to bollard avoidance, managed to place his McLaren in P7, followed by surprise Alex Albon in P8.

Nyck De Vries, subbing for Lewis Hamilton in the first session of the weekend, got a P9 result, not bad at all, considering the Dutch driver finished in the top 10, half a second behind Mercedes' George Russell.

Daniel Ricciardo finished in P10, with McLaren finally showing some pace this weekend, after the upgrades they brought ahead of the French GP.

Outside the top 10, Robert Kubica, who participated in FP1, replacing Valtteri Bottas, finished in P19, with an Alfa Romeo mechanic coming on Kubica's radio saying:"Robert, I know, not the easiest of sessions, but the car looks good, so thank you so much."

Full FP1 Classification: