Antonelli leads practice session
Antonelli leads practice session
Kimi Antonelli of Mercedes recorded the fastest time in Free Practice 2 for the Belgian Grand Prix. He finished ahead of Lando Norris from McLaren and Max Verstappen of Red Bull. Antonelli currently leads the Drivers’ standings by 25 points as the weekend begins.
The session experienced two red flags, one due to gravel on the track and another following a crash involving Pierre Gasly. Despite rain between the two Friday sessions at the Spa-Francorchamps circuit, FP2 took place on a dry track under sunny conditions. Most drivers began their runs immediately when the pit lane opened, though Oscar Piastri faced a 20-minute delay as his McLaren was being rebuilt due to a hydraulic leak.
Antonelli initially set a time of 1m 46.911s on Pirelli’s medium tyres, surpassing Verstappen’s best time from FP1. He was 0.011s faster than Isack Hadjar, with Verstappen 0.031s behind. Charles Leclerc, Norris, and George Russell followed, while Lewis Hamilton was P9 after running wide at the final chicane.
Russell’s subsequent attempt did not improve his position, leaving him more than one second slower than his teammate. Verstappen’s chance to take the top spot was hindered by a slow final sector after his wheel dipped into the gravel at Turn 14, bringing gravel onto the circuit and causing a brief red flag.
Session interruptions and driver performances
When running resumed, Hadjar was the first to use soft tyres, posting a 1m 46.714s. Verstappen and then Antonelli further lowered the benchmark, with Antonelli becoming the first driver to break the 1m 46s barrier, setting a time of 1m 45.944s. Hamilton and Leclerc, both in Ferraris, positioned themselves between Hadjar on their first runs with the red-walled Pirelli tyres.
Russell and Norris waited until closer to the halfway point to conduct their qualifying simulations. Russell only managed to improve to P7, noting over the radio that his rear tyres felt too cold. Shortly after, Norris moved into second place, two tenths off the top time. Franco Colapinto also advanced to P6 during a period of increased track activity as teams shifted focus to long runs and race simulations.
A second red flag was deployed in the final 15 minutes due to Gasly’s heavy crash at the exit of Turn 13. The Alpine driver brought his car to a stop with significant rear damage. Gasly stated that he experienced a large snap and lost control, making it difficult to recover. His team principal, Steve Nielsen, described it as a minor error that was punished by the track’s characteristics.
Despite the session restarting with two minutes remaining, no further improvements were made. Antonelli maintained his lead, followed by Norris and Verstappen. The top six were completed by Hamilton, Hadjar, and Piastri. Colapinto remained ahead of Russell, with Arvid Lindblad and Liam Lawson of Racing Bulls completing the top 10.
Leclerc finished P11, ahead of Ollie Bearman (Haas), Gabriel Bortoleto (Audi), Esteban Ocon (Haas), and the Williams duo of Alex Albon and Carlos Sainz. Nico Hulkenberg (Audi) was P17, followed by Gasly, Valtteri Bottas and Sergio Perez in their Cadillacs. The Aston Martins of Lance Stroll and Fernando Alonso completed the order, more than five seconds behind.
Antonelli was also strong in the limited long-run laps during the session, averaging 0.3 seconds faster than Norris and 0.4 seconds quicker than Russell. Andrew Shovlin, Mercedes trackside engineering director, noted a significant improvement in the car’s performance from the first session to the second. Verstappen, who topped the opening session, found his car to be in a good window despite energy management challenges.
Norris is among the drivers facing a grid penalty this weekend for exceeding their permitted number of batteries. The championship gap has narrowed for Antonelli due to issues in recent races, including retiring from second place at the Barcelona Grand Prix and losing a potential victory at Silverstone due to a wheel fairing failure and a subsequent penalty. Russell secured a win in Austria, his first since the opening grand prix of the season in Australia.
Verstappen expressed concerns about gearshifts but his pace was encouraging, especially as Red Bull had to revert to a standard rear wing after crashes in Austria and Silverstone. Technical director Pierre Wache confirmed that a mechanical problem with the wing was identified and fixed, with a revised version expected for the Hungarian Grand Prix next weekend. Racing Bulls have an upgrade on Lindblad’s car this weekend, with Lawson set to receive the next upgrade later in the year.
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Source: formula1.com
