PIASTRI FASTEST IN FORMULA 1 FREE PRACTICE 2
The second practice session of the day at the Australian Grand Prix brought a shift in performance compared to the morning, with Piastri on top.
In FP2 at Albert Park, Oscar Piastri set the fastest lap with a time of 1:19.729, leading a strong showing from the Mercedes-powered cars. Behind the McLaren driver were the two Mercedes drivers, Kimi Antonelli and George Russell, completing the top three.
Many teams were expected to push harder in this second session after a cautious FP1, where several teams were still learning how to manage the new energy systems introduced with the 2026 regulations.
The first cars to go on track were the two Audi machines. Ferrari began its program using the hard tires on both cars, and McLaren and Mercedes made the same choice. Red Bull initially sent Isack Hadjar out on the medium compound.
Early in the session the Mercedes drivers moved to the top of the timesheets. Russell and Antonelli set laps around 1:21.3, briefly leading the field. Hamilton soon improved his lap and moved ahead of Russell by a small margin after putting together a strong final sector.
Audi continued to show promising pace. Nico Hülkenberg was running inside the top ten and Gabriel Bortoleto also stayed competitive during the early stages of the session.
As the track improved, Antonelli completed another fast lap and went to the top with a 1:20.801, already quicker than his best time from FP1. McLaren quickly responded as Piastri improved the benchmark to 1:20.638.
At that moment, some drivers were still behind schedule. Lando Norris had completed only a few laps after experiencing problems earlier in the day, while Max Verstappen, Sergio Perez, and both Aston Martin drivers were also late in joining the session.
Russell was the first driver to switch to the soft tires, immediately improving the fastest time by almost six tenths. Antonelli followed closely behind his teammate, less than two tenths slower on the same compound. Hamilton also showed strong pace by placing his Ferrari in third position even while running on used hard tires.
Later, Antonelli delivered an impressive lap of 1:19.943, becoming the first driver of the day to break the 1:20 barrier. Shortly after, Piastri responded with an even faster lap, lowering the benchmark to 1:19.729, which ultimately remained the fastest time of the session.
Ferrari switched both cars to the soft tires during the middle of the session. Hamilton improved to fourth place, while Leclerc struggled slightly and remained further down the order.
Verstappen eventually fitted the soft compound and moved into sixth place, just behind Leclerc. Norris finally completed a flying lap but could only manage seventh, about one second slower than his teammate Piastri.
In the final part of the session, teams switched their focus to long-run simulations to prepare for the race. Ferrari and Mercedes used the hard tires for these runs, while Verstappen ran on the medium compound. During one of these laps the Dutch driver ran wide at Turn 10, damaging the floor of his Red Bull.
With about five minutes remaining, Sergio Perez stopped his car near the end of the circuit, bringing out a Virtual Safety Car and briefly interrupting the session.
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