Friday’s free practice sessions at the Suzuka Circuit have concluded. Here is the definitive summary of FP2 in Japan
The first day of running in Japan is in the books. Following an exhilarating opening session that saw the leading pack separated by mere thousandths, the Suzuka track delivered further surprises during FP2.
On the legendary Suzuka layout, the F1 circus is contesting the third round of the season, following the opening stops in Melbourne and Shanghai. Below is a detailed account of the action so far.
FP2 in Japan: resume
Oscar Piastri claimed the fastest time of the session with a 1:30.133. The Australian confirmed the underlying pace of the McLaren—at least in qualifying simulations—building on the promise shown during the overnight FP1 session and snatching the top spot in somewhat surprising fashion.
Just 0.092s adrift was the Mercedes of Kimi Antonelli, who edged out teammate George Russell, third and 0.205s off the pace. It was a mixed bag for Ferrari: while Charles Leclerc had set the benchmark on the medium compound, the qualifying simulation on the soft tires proved underwhelming.
The Scuderia finished fifth with Leclerc, trailing Piastri by seven-tenths, while Lewis Hamilton followed in sixth, eight-tenths back. The Prancing Horse appears to require significant setup adjustments; the car suffered from a loose rear end, particularly in the first sector, where Ferrari bled time to both Piastri and the Mercedes duo.
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Early drama struck for Lando Norris. The Briton was once again sidelined by reliability woes on his MCL40, with a hydraulic leak costing him the entire first half of the session. He eventually recovered to finish fourth.
Rounding out the top ten were Nico Hülkenberg (Audi), Alex Albon (Williams), Ollie Bearman (Haas), and a struggling Max Verstappen. The Red Bull driver appeared to be in significant difficulty, finishing a distant 1.3 seconds behind Piastri’s McLaren. Finally, there was no track activity for the Visa Cash App RB of Arvid Lindblad.
Photo: F1.com, McLaren Mastercard Formula 1 Team, Scuderia Ferrari HP
