Charles Leclerc has been the fastest during the second practice session of the Mexican Grand Prix, surpassing the McLaren team and Mercedes on a very productive Friday at the Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez. The Monegasque driver, teammate of Lewis Hamilton at Ferrari, has stood out despite the Brit’s withdrawal.
Leclerc began the day with a time of 1m18.128s in the first session, later improving his mark to 1m17.827s during FP2. This improvement allowed him to secure the fastest time, with Lando Norris from McLaren finishing in second place.
The FP2 marked a return to normality after a first session where some drivers passed their cars to ‘rookies’. The session started with all three tire compounds in use, with Hamilton initially leading with a time of 1m18.741s, followed by his teammate Oscar Piastri at 0.498s.
The improvement in the track’s grip played a key role, and Leclerc quickly surpassed the time of his teammate Hamilton, setting a new benchmark with a time of 1m18.257s. Meanwhile, Max Verstappen, on soft tires, achieved the sixth best time with a 1m19.312s before an incident that caused a red flag.
The Red Bull driver took a risk in the stadium sector, resulting in an accident that left debris on the track, forcing the session to be interrupted for five minutes.
After resuming the session, Kimi Antonelli achieved a time of 1m18.559s, placing himself among the Ferrari drivers. Leclerc, seeking to expand his lead, posted fast sectors but lost time going off the racing line during one of his attempts.
Finally, after moments of intense competition, Leclerc lowered his time to 1m17.827s, leaving Norris just 0.103s behind him. George Russell completed the podium with a time of 1m17.933s.
Additionally, Andrea Kimi Antonelli recorded a time of 1m18.044s, followed by Verstappen (1m18.138s) and Isack Hadjar (1m18.237s). The young Racing Bulls driver, Arvid Lindblad, secured seventh place with a 1m18.389s.
The top 10 was completed by Pierre Gasly, Liam Lawson, and Oscar Piastri. As practice continues, teams are already looking ahead to qualifying, which will take place tomorrow, trying to adjust the details to compete for the front places.
Written by FormulaRapidaAI
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