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Lando Norris led from Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz with a 1:30.727 in Free Practice 2 of the Singapore Grand Prix.
Under the lights of Singapore drivers prepared to head out for the second practice session of the weekend.
Before the session began the FIA ruled that McLaren would have to change their controversial rear wing. The wing was ruled legal, but it was protested against by teams after Baku and McLaren decided to change it to later avoid repercussions.
Lights turned green
The cars left the pits with the Red Bull of Max Verstappen leading the field. Drivers were running a mix between hard and medium tyres, with Charles Leclerc’s Ferrari putting in an early fast lap with a 1:32.788 on the Mediums.
The track development is significant in Singapore, with each lap of running getting faster. Daniel Ricciardo proved that point with his fast lap doing a 1:32.652 which was quickly beaten by the Ferrari of Carlos Sainz going 0.008 seconds faster than the RB.
Williams came to Singapore with a few upgrades. Coming off the back of a double-points finish in Baku, they’ll no doubt be hoping for a similar performance at Singapore. Alex Albon showed the speed of the Williams going three-tenths faster than those behind with a 1:32.238.
Although Albon held a gap of three-tenths, George Russell got the gap to 0.127 seconds behind Albon. Carlos Sainz had two purple sectors on his fast lap but the back stepped out in the final sector. Sainz lost too much time and remained fifth.
Sainz’s teammate was up next, Charles Leclerc taking to the track on a competitive lap. Leclerc improved on his teammate’s first sectors, and with a steady final sector, he moved to the top of the times, breaking the 1:31’s with a 1:31.665.
Sainz went again for another fast lap on the medium compound tyres and slotted into second just 0.265 behind his teammate.
Soft tyre runs
Williams was the first team to put on the soft tyres and try some faster runs. Alex Albon with the soft tyres went fastest with a 1:31.650. Although it was only a 0.005 faster than Leclerc due to a scrappy lap from the Williams driver.
George Russell, also on the softs, went fastest but that was quickly caught by Oscar Piastri with a 1:31.474, which was then beaten by Lando Norris’ Mclaren by an impressive seven-tenths.
Once again the Ferrari of Charles Leclerc headed out on track, this time sporting soft compound tyres. Leclerc managed to get two purple sectors again, but in the final sector lost some time to Norris’ pace as he brushed the wall. Leclerc finished the lap just 0.058 off of Norris.
Both RBs had been showing impressive pace with Tsunoda in fourth and Ricciardo in sixth. Meanwhile, Red Bull was seemingly still a step behind. Sergio Pérez was down in eighth place and Max Verstappen was down in 13th.
With just under 20 minutes to go, Norris came on the radio to say he had hit the wall, around the same time Carlos Sainz had a massive lockup, nearly hitting the wall.
Alex Albon was the only Williams running the newest upgrades. With Albon in ninth and Colapinto down in 16th, the power of the new upgrades was being shown.
Final 10 minutes
Into the final stint of practice, drivers went into the pits putting back on hard or medium tyres. Many drivers used the final stint to begin race simulations with times sat in the 1:38s.
Oscar Piastri had a brush with the wall, the biggest touch of the session but luckily the car was seemingly undamaged and Piastri continued.
With just two minutes to go, George Russell hit the wall in turn 8. He took off his front wing but avoided damage to the suspension. Russell managed to turn around and get his noseless Mercedes into the pits.
The chequered flag was waved, and Lando Norris topped the times with a 1:30.727. Behind him, Charles Leclerc with a 1:30.785 and Carlos Sainz with a 1:31.356.
FP2 CLASSIFICATION: Norris leads the two Ferraris heading into Saturday #F1 #SingaporeGP pic.twitter.com/mAoKg7wLZ9
— Formula 1 (@F1) September 20, 2024
Feature Image Credit: Glenn Dunbar/LAT Images