FP2: Verstappen leads Red Bull 1-2

Editor

Max Verstappen set the pace in Friday’s second practice, a session in which neither Mercedes driver put in a single lap on the supersoft tyres.

Valtteri Bottas and Kimi Raikkonen shared the opening honours at the Spa circuit on Friday afternoon but that all changed as the Mercedes team-mates joined the running.

Lewis Hamilton was up to P1 on his first flying lap as he clocked a 1:49.782 on the soft tyres. That was only 0.033s faster than Raikkonen’s best on the same rubber.

With some drivers swapping to the supersofts and others putting on new softs it made for an interest mix on the timesheets.

Sergio Perez went P1 on the supersofts, 0.033s up on Daniel Ricciardo on the softs and 0.061s ahead of Nico Rosberg, also on the soft tyres.

Nico Hulkenberg had a brief stint at the front before he lost out to Ricciardo and then Max Verstappen. A 1:48.085 put the Dutchman fastest of all.

He finished the session 0.256s ahead of Ricciardo with Hulkenberg 0.572s down.

Sebastian Vettel was fourth ahead of Perz and Rosberg. Surprisingly neither the German nor his team-mate Hamilton put in a supersoft tyre run.

Rosberg finished the afternoon P6 while Hamilton, who covered 14 laps on the medium tyres, was 13th.

Times
1  Max Verstappen  Red Bull 1’48.085 27 laps
2  Daniel Ricciardo  Red Bull 1’48.341 0.256 27 laps
3  Nico Hulkenberg  Force India 1’48.657 0.572 30 laps
4  Sebastian Vettel  Ferrari 1’49.023 0.938 27 laps
5  Sergio Perez  Force India 1’49.100 1.015 27 laps
6  Nico Rosberg  Mercedes 1’49.161 1.076 33 laps
7  Kimi Raikkonen  Ferrari 1’49.244 1.159 30 laps
8  Romain Grosjean  Haas 1’49.419 1.334 20 laps
9  Jenson Button  McLaren 1’49.419 1.334 23 laps
10  Esteban Gutierrez  Haas 1’49.648 1.563 23 laps
11  Pascal Wehrlein  Manor 1’49.716 1.631 31 laps
12  Fernando Alonso  McLaren 1’49.772 1.687 30 laps
13  Lewis Hamilton  Mercedes 1’49.782 1.697 33 laps
14  Daniil Kvyat  Toro Rosso 1’49.916 1.831 25 laps
15  Marcus Ericsson  Sauber 1’50.083 1.998 27 laps
16  Valtteri Bottas  Williams 1’50.151 2.066 19 laps
17  Felipe Massa  Williams 1’50.157 2.072 29 laps
18  Carlos Sainz Jr.  Toro Rosso 1’50.194 2.109 25 laps
19  Kevin Magnussen  Renault 1’50.375 2.290 34 laps
20  Jolyon Palmer  Renault 1’50.562 2.477 32 laps
21  Esteban Ocon  Manor 1’50.659 2.574 25 laps
22  Felipe Nasr  Sauber 1’50.719 2.634 24 laps