Carlos Sainz Jnr set the fastest time of an extended second practice session in Mexico that was focused on testing tyre compounds.
Sainz was quickest ahead of Oscar Piastri. However championship leader Max Verstappen failed to set a time as the power unit problems he experienced in the first session continued.
The second practice session of the day was an unusual one for several reasons. It was the first opportunity for five drivers who had handed their cars over to junior drivers for the first hour of running: Lewis Hamilton, Charles Leclerc, Lando Norris, Fernando Alonso and Zhou Guanyu. The session was also extended to 90 minutes, to allow for teams to test Pirelli’s prototype compounds for 2025.
Drivers were given specific run plans to follow over the session, with compounds split between drivers in the field to try and gain as much representative data as possible for Pirelli.
After Alexander Albon and Oliver Bearman clashed in the opening practice session, both Albon and Leclerc were delayed in starting their sessions as repairs to their cars continued. Verstappen had reported concerns with his power unit in first practice and as the championship leader took to the track, he again reported “disturbing” noises from behind the cockpit, leading to him being called into the pit lane.
Sainz set the early benchmark with a 1’17.809, seven tenths faster than Liam Lawson who was just a tenth ahead of Piastri. But just over 10 minutes into running, the session was stopped when George Russell took too much kerb through turn eight and spun into the TecPro barrier, triggering a red flag. Russell climbed out of his significantly damaged Mercedes and was taken to the medical centre for checks before being cleared and released.
The session resumed after more than 20 minutes of delays for barrier repairs. Verstappen took to the track once more but again reported that everything was not right with his power unit, resulting in him being brought to the garage for an early end to his afternoon.
Drivers continued on their prescribed runs, with Sainz improving on his own best time of the session with a 1’17.669. Piastri also improved, moving up into second. In the closing minutes, the five drivers who had missed the opening practice session had the opportunity to run on a set of medium tyres from their weekend allocation, but when the chequered flag flew Sainz remained the fastest driver.
Yuki Tsunoda finished the session with the third-fastest time set on…
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