More trouble for Verstappen + Alonso tops Canada Friday

Fernando Alonso ended Formula 1's practice day at the Canadian Grand Prix on top while Max Verstappen hit trouble. 

FP2 headlines

- Alonso quickest for only 2nd time in 2024
- Fire on Verstappen's car limits running
- Rain prevents race sims
- Leclerc under investigation 

Verstappen missed the majority of the session after what appeared to be a fire curtailed his running. He had to bring his RB20 back into the pits fewer than 25 minutes into the session for his Red Bull team to diagnose the problem.

That investigation included a wall of Red Bull personnel at the front of the team's garage, blocking the view of the watching world on the exposed car. The team reported it was an ERS problem.

Verstappen didn't return to the track and ended up 18th fastest.

All of the teams were desperate to get some dry on-track running on the resurfaced Montreal circuit after FP1 was essentially a washout.

Rain was falling at the start of FP2 but that didn't stop the majority of the field from taking to the track on slick tyres.

Lando Norris's FP1 benchmark of a 1m24.435s - the fastest of the late-FP1 soft tyre fliers - was beaten by Pierre Gasly's Alpine within 10 minutes of second practice.

Thereafter the times tumbled further and further and despite further rain flurries, Aston Martin's Alonso had the bar down to 1m17.835s after 20 minutes.

Ten minutes later Alonso had dropped it to a 1m15.810s, just before a rain shower sent everyone back to the pits. 

It took another 10 minutes for another car to emerge with Esteban Ocon going out on inters but the track conditions didn't improve enough thereafter for anybody to trouble Alonso's benchmark.

Alonso's FP2-topping time this year - the first time he's topped a practice session since FP2 in Jeddah three months ago - was still over two seconds off Lewis Hamilton's FP2 benchmark from last year.

Leclerc had an eventful session. He'll face a post-session investigation for running intermediate tyres before the track was officially declared wet in the first five minutes of the session, and at the other end of the session, he spun at the hairpin on intermediates. He ended up fourth fastest on mediums behind the top three on softs. 

George Russell was second fastest for Mercedes, four tenths of a second behind Alonso while Lance Stroll made it two Aston Martins in the top three.

Behind Leclerc, Daniel Ricciardo, Kevin Magnussen, Lewis Hamilton, Yuki Tsunoda, Alex Albon and Sergio Perez rounded out the top 10.