F1 GP Australia, Free Practice 2: Hamilton confirms himself as the fastest, with Verstappen very close

Lewis Hamilton he confirmed himself as the fastest also in the second Freestyle session Melbourne. With a time of 1:23.931, the Briton finished in the lead, with Verstappen very close to just over a tenth. Third Bottas, at 22 cents, while Raikkonen he is immediately fourth in the scores of his compatriot. Less incisive however Hag, who finished fifth, half a second from the top. Grosjean, Ricciardo, who had to abort his lap due to a red flag, Alonso, Magnussene and Vandoorne complete the top ten positions, on a very hot day at Albert Park, which also saw the reigning world champion stand out in the race pace simulation.

News – The green lights up in the pit lane but it takes a few minutes before Magnussen's Haas starts the second session. Grosjean and Vettel follow him shortly after, on the soft tyre. The first time goes to the American car but then immediately goes to Vettel. The soft mix also applies to Verstappen and Bottas, who take turns leading the way. However, with the red compound, Hamilton set the pace, in 1:24.569. Raikkonen was third, with the same tire as the Briton, who improved and dropped to 1:24.385. Meanwhile, the asphalt temperature in Melbourne rose to 44°C. The ranking of the top ten, shortly before the qualifying simulation starts and when thirty minutes have passed since the start, sees Hamilton in the lead on the supersoft compound, followed by Verstappen with the soft and Vettel with the ultrasoft. So Bottas, Ricciardo, Kimi, Sainz, Alonso, Grosjean and Vandoorne.

Vettel is the first to relaunch himself with the ultrasoft tyre. Raikkonen follows him. The German improved but remained third, while his Finnish teammate took the lead, with a time of 1:24.214. Then it's a Mercedes "double", with Hamilton first ahead of Bottas, in 1:23.931. The two Red Bulls also switch to the best performing compound of the weekend, and Verstappen "splits" the two Mercedes, second, 127 thousandths behind Hamilton. Halfway through the session, with the entire grid in qualifying simulation setup and with the same tyre: Hamilton, Verstappen, Bottas, Raikkonen, Vettel, Ricciardo, Alonso, Sainz, Hulkenberg and Hartley.

Grosjean jumped to sixth place, just before the red flag was waved on the track due to some debris that needed to be removed on the starting straight. The track becomes usable again and Stroll and Vandoorne are the first to relaunch, with the Williams driver taking 13th place. Thirty minutes from the end, Hamilton remains the fastest, thanks to a time of 1.23.931. At just 1 tenth there is Verstappen, then Bottas at 28 hundredths. Kimi fourth and Vettel fifth, half a second from the top. Then Grosjean, Ricciardo, Alonso, Magnussene and Vandoorne. These are the times with the qualifying tyre.

The drivers then move on to the race pace simulation. Vettel concentrates his work on the yellow compound, while Raikkonen chooses the red one. Hamilton instead proceeds with the ultrasoft until the checkered flag, where he takes the lead, followed by Verstappen and Bottas.

F1 GP Australia – Times, results and laps Free Practice 2