Ferrari 1-2 in second practice, Red Bull struggles continue

Charles Leclerc led a Ferrari one-two in second practice for Formula 1’s Dutch Grand Prix, as Red Bull’s struggles continued at Zandvoort.

Key moments:

> Leclerc leads Ferrari 1-2 by 0.004s

> Verstappen only eighth fastest

> Mercedes and McLaren quick again, Stroll in top six

Having missed most of first practice after suffering a gearbox failure on his RB18, F1 championship leader Max Verstappen enjoyed a clean afternoon session, but Red Bull looked uncompetitive on this twisty circuit and Verstappen could only manage the eighth-fastest time in FP2, nearly seven tenths down on Leclerc’s Ferrari, while team-mate Sergio Perez finished the session outside the top 10.

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Carlos Sainz led the way for a spell, until Leclerc produced a lap 0.004s quicker with around 30 minutes of the session remaining.

Having led the way in FP1, Mercedes again looked a threat on a track that punishes the W13’s drag much less than Spa, with Lewis Hamilton lapping just 0.072s off Leclerc during the soft-tyre qualifying simulations.

McLaren’s relatively strong form on this higher-downforce track also continued, with Lando Norris lapping just over a tenth off the pace and splitting the Mercedes of Hamilton and FP1 pace-setter George Russell.

Russell’s best lap in this session was 0.310s slower than Leclerc’s and good enough for fifth, just a tenth clear of Lance Stroll’s Aston Martin, which impressively rounded out the top six – just four tenths off the pace.

Fernando Alonso was seventh-fastest, ahead of Verstappen, Alpine team-mate Esteban Ocon and McLaren’s Daniel Ricciardo, who rounded out the top 10 with a best lap more than nine tenths off Norris before his car sprung an oil leak on a radiator and became stuck in the McLaren garage.

🔴 RED FLAG 🔴

Tsunoda has beached his car in the gravel #DutchGP #F1 pic.twitter.com/YIWvV0vrum

— Formula 1 (@F1) September 2, 2022

AlphaTauri’s Yuki Tsunoda lapped 11th-quickest before causing a brief red flag period during the long runs by going off and getting beached in the gravel. He finished the session one spot ahead of Perez’s Red Bull, which had struggled in FP1 and did so again in the second session, lapping only 12th-fastest, 1.148s off the pace.

Having finished FP1 inside the top 10, Alex Albon’s Williams slumped to 17th in FP2 – 1.492s off the pace and behind Mick Schumacher’s Haas, Sebastian Vettel’s Aston Martin, Zhou Guanyu’s Alfa Romeo and Pierre Gasly’s AlphaTauri.

Practice 2 Results