Unsurprisingly, every driver took to the track inside the opening 10 minutes to get a feel for the conditions, with little drama to report aside from Lawson brushing the wall at Turn 9 and team mate Max Verstappen dipping a wheel in the gravel through Turn 6.
However, as more drivers – including home hero Doohan – flicked gravel chippings onto the track at the same spot, the first red flag of the 2025 season was flown, giving marshals the chance to conduct a clean-up operation and clear the racing line.
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Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc held P1 at this point on a 1m 17.880s, a couple of tenths clear of Mercedes rival George Russell, those times having been posted on medium compound tyres before some soft rubber appeared at the session restart.
Over the next few minutes, reigning World Champion Verstappen lowered the benchmark to a 1m 17.696s, followed by a solid-looking effort from new Williams signing Sainz, who duly took over at the top of the timing screen on a 1m 17.401s.
But just as these soft-shod laps were coming in, Bearman lost control of his Haas exiting the Turn 9/10 chicane and slammed into the concrete wall, bringing out another red flag. “I’m sorry,” came a dejected radio message from the unharmed Briton in the aftermath.
