Italian GP FP2: Norris tops, Leclerc chases, Williams decent
F1 NewsFriday, 05 September 2025 at 18:04
Lando Norris retook the initiative in the 2025 Italian Grand Prix topping the second practice session after struggling in FP1 earlier on Friday.
After struggling in FP1, Norris, who seemed to be carrying more downforce and slower on straights, posted a 1:19.878 to go fastest in FP2 and was chased by Charles Leclerc in second who was just 0.083s behind the Briton.
But it was Carlos Sainz in third as the slippery Williams cars continued to impress, as the Spaniard was 0.096s off Norris' pace.
Oscar Piastri, who took over his car after handing it over to Alex Dunne in FP1, was fourth fastest in the second McLaren, 0.181s slower than his teammate.
Lewis Hamilton was fifth fastest in the second Ferrari, 0.011s behind Piastri and 0.007s ahead of reigning Formula 1 Max Verstappen who was sixth in the Red Bull and complaining about he nervous and bouncy RB21.
Alex Albon was three tenths off the pace in seventh in the second Williams and was followed by Nico Hulkenberg in eighth as Yuki Tsunoda was ninth as George Russell was tenth.
It was interesting as the top six were within two tenths as the remainder of the top ten were within one tenth of each other which shows how close the competition is going to be come qualifying with tow games happening not to mention traffic in Q1.
Kimi Antonelli crashed early on in the session and was stuck in the gravel missing out on valuable running time. He was classified 19th.
Buildup towards FP2
Ferrari were rapid in the first practice session for the Italian GP, but it remains to be seen whether they were showboating to whether their pace was genuine.
In all cases, the Tifosi were elated to see Hamilton and Leclerc on top while McLaren, on the other hand, struggled as Norris had several off moments with his MCL39 suffering understeer.
But it would be hard to bet against the reigning F1 Constructors' Champions and their ability to turn their situation around as Piastri will now join the action after sitting out FP1 with Dunne taking over his car.
Verstappen seemed to be in decent form as well and was ahead of the McLaren but complained about his car sliding around regardless of the tyre compound it was on.
Williams, on the other hand, looked racy at Monza which is not a surprise as their car is known to enjoy tracks where downforce is not a requirement.
Mercedes' pace is still yet to be judged with Russell breaking down which turned out to be caused by a hydraulic issue on the W16, while Fernando Alonso dragged the Aston Martin into the top ten which is what Isack Hadjar did with his VCARB.
How will the pecking order develop in FP2?
FP2 Session Highlights
The clear conditions remained for FP2 as track temperature dropped only from 42 to 41 degrees Celsius as air temperature was 27 degrees.
The drivers did not waste any time getting out on track getting their FP2 underway especially Piastri and Franco Colapinto who to make up for the time they lost in FP1 when they handed their cars over to Dunne and Paul Aron respectively.
Soon, F1 Championship leader, Piastri reported that his right mirror was cracked and when asked of he could continue, he said he could.
Then Norris said he lost the whole of his right mirror...
Then Pierre Gasly messed up his entry into the Ascari Chicane and went straight into the gravel, but after that Antonelli brought out the Red Flag after getting beached in the gravel in the second Lesmo. That was ten minutes into the session.
The same happened with Antonelli in Monza last year when he made his FP1 debut with Mercedes if you recall. In all cases, session over...
The session was resumed with almost 45 minutes remaining but soon Gabriel Bortoleto went wide and hard on he kerbs at Turn 7 and asked his team to check his floor. Piastri did the same at the same corner, but the Brazilian pitted for a checkup.
Then Albon had a huge moment in the first Lesmo, wide on the kerbs and with a big snap but he managed to hold it.
Soo after, Norris had a snap coming out of Turn 5 while on his first lap on the Soft tyres halfway in the session as qualifying simulations were on.
Leclerc then reported "no grip at all" as replay showed him going wide, a wheel in the gravel at the exit of Turn 7.
Then Verstappen lost the rear at Lesmo 2, and reported that his car was getting jumpy and nervous. The Albon had a moment coming out of the Lesmo.
After that, Hamilton locked up into Turn 4/5 and went hard on the kerb and out of shape.
With the qualifying runs over, that was the order:
And as the session entered the final 15 minutes, harder tyres were bolted on the car, more fuel added as the long runs were on.
Hamilton then reported that the power keeps dropping out between Turns 6 and 7. Then Leclerc had an off through Ascari, hard into the gravel, after a lockup.
Then Hamilton went into the gravel at Turn 7 with Verstappen behind him having to take avoiding action from the gravel thrown onto the track.
Following that, Piastri went off and wide at Turn 7. Then Leclerc locked up again and went straight at Turn 5.
The session was concluded with practice starts.
Italian GP FP2 Classification
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