McLaren Dominates Second Practice Session in Saudi Arabia

In a thrilling turn of events, McLaren driver Lando Norris claimed the top spot in Free Practice 2 (FP2) for the Formula 1 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix. The session was cut short due to an avoidable crash by Red Bull racer Yuki Tsunoda at the final corner.

Red Flag Interrupts FP2

With just eight minutes remaining on the clock, Tsunoda’s RB21 collided with the outside wall of the final corner, prompting a red flag and ending the session prematurely. Despite the late interruption, there was enough time for the usual practice starts before the session concluded.

The incident marked the only major disruption in an otherwise smooth second practice session on the 6.1km Jeddah street circuit. McLaren continued to demonstrate their dominance, with Norris edging out teammate Oscar Piastri by a mere 0.001s.

Top Performers in FP2

After surprisingly relinquishing the top spot in the first practice session to Alpine’s Pierre Gasly, Norris and Piastri never looked back. The McLaren duo consistently posted impressive lap times throughout the session.

As the frontrunners switched to soft tires, world champion Max Verstappen briefly took the lead, but was quickly overtaken by Piastri’s 1m28.430s. Norris responded with a 1m28.267s, further solidifying McLaren‘s position at the front.

Ferrari‘s Charles Leclerc finished fourth, four tenths behind Norris, followed by Williams driver Carlos Sainz and the second Red Bull of Tsunoda (before his crash). Russell, Gasly, Nico Hulkenberg, Alex Albon completed the top 10.

Stewards Summon Verstappen and Hamilton

Traffic was a significant factor on the high-speed and blind twists of the Jeddah Corniche street circuit, with both Verstappen and Ferrari‘s Lewis Hamilton summoned to the stewards for allegedly impeding fellow drivers. Hamilton ended up in 13th after a relatively quiet session.

Incidents During FP2

Prior to Tsunoda’s crash, Andrea Kimi Antonelli also clipped the wall coming out of the same corner, prompting a quick garage call. Gabriel Bortoleto did not participate in FP2 after his Sauber team discovered a fuel leak that could not be repaired in time.