Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton achieved the best times in the opening practice sessions at the Australian Grand Prix, marking the start of a new era in Formula 1.

Charles Leclerc from Ferrari and Lewis Hamilton from Mercedes recorded the fastest times in the first practice session of the Australian Grand Prix, with Leclerc taking the lead with a final quick lap, 0.469 seconds faster than Hamilton. Until that moment, the difference between the three top drivers, Leclerc, Hamilton, and Max Verstappen from Red Bull, was under 0.1 seconds. Verstappen had a new teammate, Isack Hadjar, who finished in fourth place, while British rookie Arvid Lindblad ended up in fifth place. In contrast, Aston Martin had a difficult session, with Fernando Alonso unable to participate due to a problem with the Honda power unit, and Lance Stroll managing to complete only three laps before encountering a similar issue. Adrian Newey, the team director, mentioned that the vibrations from the Honda engine are so severe that Alonso could suffer permanent nerve damage if he ran more than 25 laps. This highlights the reliability issues of the engine, which does not meet the necessary standards in Formula 1, in the context of the new regulations introduced this season.