Belgian GP: Max Verstappen dominates Practice Two for Red Bull as Mercedes struggles at Spa
Max Verstappen fastest for Red Bull in second practice at Spa; Charles Leclerc second for Ferrari as Mercedes struggled in cool and wet conditions; watch Belgian GP qualifying live at 3pm on Saturday, broadcast from 2pm
Last Updated: 08/26/22 5:45pm
World champion frontman Max Verstappen dominated Practice Two at the Belgian Grand Prix as Red Bull turned Ferrari’s advantage in the opening session at Spa.
Charles Leclerc, Verstappen’s last title challenger, was almost a second behind Ferrari, while McLaren’s Lando Norris and Aston Martin’s Lance Stroll impressed with third and fourth, respectively.
Carlos Sainz, who set the pace for Ferrari earlier on Friday as the sport resumed its return from a three-week summer break, could only finish fifth, while Lewis Hamilton was sixth as Mercedes struggled. tough, with teammate George Russell finishing eighth behind Fernando Alonso.
Verstappen, Leclerc and Norris – along with three more cars – are set to come from the back of the grid after receiving fines for using new engine parts, setting up an attractive mixed grid for the race. race on Sunday.
As was the case with Practice One, the session’s dry run time was cut short as showers interrupted the final round, but the limited lap time showed Red Bull had a step ahead of their rivals ahead of qualifying. on Saturday.
Ferrari and Mercedes hope forecasts of warmer and drier conditions over the weekend will help them close the obvious gap with Verstappen.
More to follow…
Timesheet for two times Belgian GP practice
Driver | Team | Time |
---|---|---|
1) Max Verstappen | Red Bull | 1: 45.507 |
2) Charles Leclerc | Ferrari | +0.862 |
3) Lando Norris | McLaren | +1.082 |
4) Lance Stroll | Aston Martin | +1.128 |
5) Carlos Sainz | Ferrari | +1,142 |
6) Lewis Hamilton | Mercedes | +1.386 |
7) Fernando Alonso | Alpine | +1,468 |
8) George Russell | Mercedes | +1.535 |
9) Daniel Ricciardo | McLaren | +1,748 |
10) Sergio Perez | Red Bull | +1.839 |
11) Alex Albon | Williams | +2,013 |
12) Zhou Guanyu | Alfa Romeo | +2,110 |
13) Yuki Tsunoda | AlphaTauri | +2.151 |
14) Pierre Gasly | AlphaTauri | +2.275 |
15) Valtteri Bottas | Alfa Romeo | +2,360 |
16) Sebastian Vettel | Aston Martin | +2.437 |
17) Esteban Ocon | Alpine | +2.701 |
18) Kevin Magnussen | Haas | +2,912 |
19) Nicholas Latifi | Williams | +3.105 |
20) Mick Schumacher | Haas | +4.434 |