George Russell responds for Mercedes with fastest Monza practice lap

George Russell gave Mercedes the fastest lap of the day at Monza, responding to Ferrari’s early pace in practice for the Italian Grand Prix. His second-session time of 1 minute, 22.559 seconds put him 0.120 seconds ahead of Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc.

Leclerc had led the first practice session with a time of 1:23.008, 0.173 seconds faster than Ferrari teammate Lewis Hamilton. He finished second in the later session, while Hamilton placed fifth. Championship leader Kimi Antonelli was third fastest, despite an engine penalty that is set to send him to the back of Sunday’s grid.

Lando Norris, who has won the past two races, was fourth. His McLaren teammate Oscar Piastri was sixth. Norris said McLaren’s pace was not yet where it needed to be, while Leclerc said Ferrari still had work to do despite feeling that the car was solid.

“

There's still some work ahead of us as our competitors look strong, but so far the feeling with the car was solid.

Russell needs to win Sunday’s race to reduce the 59-point gap to Antonelli in the championship. The result also sets up a tight contest at the fast Monza circuit, with Ferrari, Mercedes and McLaren all represented near the front of the second-session order.

The report also noted a separate decision involving the Monaco Grand Prix. After McLaren and Red Bull appealed to the FIA International Court of Appeal, Pierre Gasly lost his third-place finish and dropped to seventh after two five-second penalties for speeding were reinstated. Isack Hadjar returned to third, while Piastri moved to fourth.

“

The pace isn't where we need it to be right now.