Charles Leclerc

F1 News: Leclerc tops Practice 2 at Imola, Red Bull Struggles

Charles Leclerc made it a clean sweep of both Friday Practice Sessions at Imola in his #16 Ferrari, sending the Tifosi home very happy, and the good news for the Tifosi is that the Ferrari looked quick on the longer runs too.

–by Mark Cipolloni–

Leclerc turned a fast lap of 1m15.906s, 0.192s faster than the McLaren of Oscar Piastri.

Yuki Tsunoda was a sensational third in his VCARB RB, 0.38s behind Leclerc, and yes fuel loads are an unknown, but he’s been quick over one lap all season long.

Lewis Hamilton was 4th quick for Mercedes, 0.391s behind Leclerc.

George Russell made it a Mercedes 4-5 with the 5th best time, 0.405s behind Leclerc.

Max Verstappen was only 7th fastest, very unhappy with his Red Bull, both in qualifying setup and race pace. He said it was easy to lose control of the car.

Sergio Perez of Mexico driving the (11) Oracle Red Bull Racing RB20 on track during practice ahead of the F1 Grand Prix of Emilia-Romagna at Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari Circuit on May 17, 2024 in Imola, Italy. (Photo by Mark Thompson/Getty Images) // Getty Images / Red Bull Content Pool //
Max Verstappen of the Netherlands driving the (1) Oracle Red Bull Racing RB20 on track during practice ahead of the F1 Grand Prix of Emilia-Romagna at Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari Circuit on May 17, 2024 in Imola, Italy. (Photo by Mark Thompson/Getty Images) // Getty Images / Red Bull Content Pool

 

The Dutchman led from fellow Red Bull driver Sergio Perez in 8th

Hulkenberg was the lead Haas in ninth despite his slow start to the hour, ahead of Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso in 10th, while Daniel Ricciardo went 11th fastest in the RB and McLaren’s Lando Norris followed in 12th.

Don’t count out Lando Norris for pole. He was down in 12th but focussed on long runs with heavy fuel.

Valtteri Bottas was P16 for Kick Sauber, while Kevin Magnussen went P17 after sitting out FP1 to allow Oliver Bearman to run in his Haas. Albon and Sargeant ended a tough day for Williams in P18 and P20, with the Kick Sauber of Zhou Guanyu sandwiched between them in P19. Sargeant had a heavier Williams as only Albon’s car was fitted with new lightweight components.

Saturday morning will be the final practice session, followed by qualifying in the afternoon. Will Leclerc keep his nose in front, and send the Ferrari fans wild? What can Tsunoda do at his team’s home race? And will Verstappen get any sort of a handle on his car?

Emilia Romagna GP Practice 2 Results

POS NO DRIVER CAR TIME GAP LAPS
1 16 Charles Leclerc FERRARI 1:15.906 +0.000s 28
2 81 Oscar Piastri MCLAREN MERCEDES 1:16.098 +0.192s 29
3 22 Yuki Tsunoda RB HONDA RBPT 1:16.286 +0.380s 31
4 44 Lewis Hamilton MERCEDES 1:16.297 +0.391s 28
5 63 George Russell MERCEDES 1:16.311 +0.405s 31
6 55 Carlos Sainz FERRARI 1:16.423 +0.517s 29
7 1 Max Verstappen RED BULL RACING HONDA RBPT 1:16.447 +0.541s 22
8 11 Sergio Perez RED BULL RACING HONDA RBPT 1:16.552 +0.646s 24
9 27 Nico Hulkenberg HAAS FERRARI 1:16.826 +0.920s 27
10 14 Fernando Alonso ASTON MARTIN ARAMCO MERCEDES 1:16.838 +0.932s 28
11 3 Daniel Ricciardo RB HONDA RBPT 1:16.967 +1.061s 31
12 4 Lando Norris MCLAREN MERCEDES 1:16.980 +1.074s 29
13 18 Lance Stroll ASTON MARTIN ARAMCO MERCEDES 1:16.991 +1.085s 25
14 31 Esteban Ocon ALPINE RENAULT 1:17.008 +1.102s 30
15 10 Pierre Gasly ALPINE RENAULT 1:17.064 +1.158s 31
16 77 Valtteri Bottas KICK SAUBER FERRARI 1:17.088 +1.182s 27
17 20 Kevin Magnussen HAAS FERRARI 1:17.129 +1.223s 31
18 23 Alexander Albon WILLIAMS MERCEDES 1:17.135 +1.229s 22
19 24 Zhou Guanyu KICK SAUBER FERRARI 1:17.606 +1.700s 27
20 2 Logan Sargeant WILLIAMS MERCEDES 1:17.848 +1.942s 21