Charles Leclerc led the first practice session for the Italian Grand Prix at Monza, outpacing Lewis Hamilton by 0.173 seconds. This marked the first time Ferrari had set the pace at their home race, with Mercedes' George Russell finishing third. Liam Lawson, filling in for the injured Isack Hadjar at Red Bull, was fourth fastest, edging out Kimi Antonelli, who is currently leading the drivers' championship by 59 points over Hamilton and Russell. Antonelli's time was 0.636 seconds slower than Leclerc's best lap. The session took place in extremely hot conditions and was briefly halted when rookie Colton Herta, substituting for regular Cadillac driver Sergio Perez, experienced a hydraulic issue and stopped on the track. Hamilton, who is aiming for his first victory at Monza as a Ferrari driver, expressed confidence ahead of the race. Ferrari, having received an engine upgrade, showed early promise with Leclerc's performance. The Monegasque driver was 0.173 seconds faster than Hamilton and 0.3 seconds quicker than Russell. Antonelli, who is 20 years old, will start from the back of the grid due to a penalty for using a new power unit. The young driver is hoping to bounce back after the setback, despite being the current championship leader. Liam Lawson, substituting for Hadjar, who is out with a wrist injury, placed himself between the two Mercedes drivers, finishing 0.425 seconds behind Leclerc. Lando Norris, who recently won in Hungary and the Netherlands, arrived at Monza in strong form, finishing sixth, 0.711 seconds behind Leclerc. Norris is 83 points behind Antonelli in the championship. Max Verstappen was absent during the first session as teams rotated drivers to accommodate rookie obligations. Ayumu Iwasa, Verstappen's replacement, finished 17th out of 22 drivers, while Verstappen is set to return for the second practice session later in the day. Briton Arvid Lindblad finished seventh for Racing Bulls, with Gabriel Bortoleto of Audi and Franco Colapinto of Alpine rounding out the top 10. Paul Aron, replacing Pierre Gasly at Alpine, was also in the top 10. Oscar Piastri, the other McLaren driver, finished 11th, more than four tenths of a second behind Norris. Yuki Tsunoda, replacing Lawson at Racing Bulls for the second consecutive weekend, finished 12th. During the session, it was announced that McLaren and Red Bull have successfully appealed the results of the Monaco Grand Prix, overturning incorrect pit-lane speeding penalties. This means Alpine's Pierre Gasly loses the podium he previously earned.