2023 F1 Las Vegas Grand Prix – Free Practice 2 (FP2) results

Thomas Maher 17 Nov 2023 12:01 PM

Charles Leclerc drives down the pitlane during practice at the Las Vegas Grand Prix.

Check out the complete results from second practice in Las Vegas, where Ferrari’s day turned around after a disastrous FP1.

After picking up catastrophic damage to Carlos Sainz’s car due to a loose drain cover nine minutes into FP1, Ferrari had a much better end to the practice day as they finished with a 1-2 with Charles Leclerc leading Sainz in FP2.

The drain covers required extensive attention following the truncated first practice session, resulting in a long delay before the second session began – eventually beginning at 2.30am local time and extended to 90 minutes.

Charles Leclerc sets the pace in FP2

With the drivers finally free to get some laps in and learn the track, there were plenty of lock-ups and off-track moments as they figured out how to go quicker – not helped by the circuit surface not offering much grip at the early point in the weekend – although none of the incidents resulted in contact with the walls or any car damage.

Max Verstappen was one of the drivers to slide off into an escape area, as was Sergio Perez, with the Red Bulls having a surprisingly understated session. Verstappen also had a late moment at Turn 5 that brought out the yellow flags, but was able to continue. Perez finished fourth and Verstappen in sixth overall – both almost a second off the pace set by Leclerc.

The Monegasque’s advantage over Sainz was half a second at the head of the field, with Fernando Alonso just 0.011 behind Sainz as the Aston Martin briefly snatched top spot midway through the session.

Alfa Romeo’s Valtteri Bottas split the Red Bulls in what was a very impressive outing for the Finn, while Nico Hulkenberg showed promise for Haas by finishing seventh.

Lance Stroll was eighth for Aston Martin, Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton in ninth, and Williams’ Alex Albon in 10th.