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Lando Norris ended Thursday night fastest under the lights in Las Vegas, clocking a 1:33.602 to lead Mercedes rookie Kimi Antonelli by just 0.029s, with Charles Leclerc — quickest in FP1 — in third. The session was far from straightforward, with two red flag interruptions, gusty winds, and a string of lock-ups preventing many drivers from completing representative soft-tyre runs.
The second practice session began cautiously after light drizzle between FP1 and FP2 left the 6.201km Las Vegas Strip Circuit green and low on grip. Early laps were mostly on medium tyres, with Nico Hulkenberg the only driver sampling the hards initially. McLaren, who had endured a messy FP1, kept both cars in the garage for the opening minutes before sending Norris and Oscar Piastri out — the former running a Monza-spec rear wing, the latter a skinnier configuration as part of a split test.
Max Verstappen briefly topped the times on mediums, but as the track rubbered in, the order shuffled rapidly. Norris dipped into the 1:33s to reclaim P1, while Antonelli continued to impress with a smooth lap just shy of the McLaren’s benchmark. Leclerc, looking strong again after his FP1-topping performance, slotted into third before his session ended prematurely with a suspected gearbox issue at Turn 5, triggering the second red flag.
The interruptions meant several big names — including Piastri and George Russell — never got a clean soft-tyre lap. The wind, combined with the cool 16.4°C track temperature, caused widespread front graining and understeer, leading to notable offs for Bearman, Hadjar, and Sainz.
Norris’ best lap came on fresh softs after a solid medium-tyre run, showing McLaren had made a step forward from FP1. His sector two time was the quickest of the session, and despite the gusty conditions, he managed to avoid major errors.
Antonelli’s P2 finish underlines his growing confidence at the top level. His medium-tyre pace was strong, and he ranked inside the top three for both sector one and sector three splits.
Leclerc’s pace on mediums was again competitive, but his soft-tyre run was cut short by mechanical trouble. Ferrari will likely change his gearbox overnight, a common FP2 procedure, but the stoppage cost him valuable qualifying simulation data.
Racing Bulls duo Isack Hadjar and Liam Lawson both featured in the top six, continuing their strong Vegas form from FP1. Williams also looked sharp, with Alex Albon eighth and Carlos Sainz showing promising sector times before aborting his lap.
With the pecking order still unclear due to disrupted runs, Friday’s FP3 will be crucial for fine-tuning qualifying setups. Red Bull, Ferrari, and Mercedes appear closely matched, while McLaren’s improved balance could put them in the pole fight. The midfield battle between Racing Bulls and Williams is also shaping up to be one of the weekend’s most competitive storylines.
Tomorrow’s schedule sees FP3 at 16:30 local time (00:30 UTC) followed by qualifying at 20:00 (04:00 UTC). With the top teams separated by tenths and the midfield looking feisty, the fight for pole under the Vegas lights could be one of the most unpredictable of the season.
He’s a software engineer with a deep passion for Formula 1 and motorsport. He co-founded Formula Live Pulse to make live telemetry and race insights accessible, visual, and easy to follow.