Lando Norris set the pace in a lively but once again messy second practice session for the Italian Grand Prix, edging Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc by the slimmest of margins at Monza.
The McLaren driver clocked a best lap of 1m19.878s, underlining his intent to close the 34-point deficit to team-mate Oscar Piastri in the championship battle.
The result gave McLaren an early edge heading into Saturday, while Ferrari showed signs of a home resurgence, much to the delight of the tifosi packing the grandstands.
The session was barely nine minutes old when the red flags flew. Local favourite Andrea Kimi Antonelli, making his first Italian Grand Prix weekend appearance as a full-time Mercedes driver, lost control at Lesmo 2.
A snap of oversteer pitched the 19-year-old into the gravel, and despite his efforts to save the slide, the car was beached.
That ended Antonelli’s day after just four laps – an unfortunate repeat of his FP1 debut mistake at the same circuit 12 months earlier. Marshals swiftly recovered the Mercedes, and action resumed after a short delay.
Once the track went green, Max Verstappen briefly grabbed the top spot before being overtaken by Williams’ Carlos Sainz, who carried his strong form from the first session. But the arrival of the soft-tyre runs at half distance reset the order once more.
Norris was the first to dip beneath the 1m20s mark, his sharp 1m19.878s standing as the benchmark. Sainz slotted into second before being pushed down by Leclerc, who recovered from a shaky start to the session.
The Monegasque had earlier complained of having “no grip at all” after his initial soft-tyre run left him languishing in 10th.
On his next attempt, though, Leclerc hooked things up, leaping to second just 0.083s behind Norris. He later survived a scare at Ascari, skimming the gravel and grass but escaping without damage.
Lewis Hamilton, who topped FP1 earlier in the day, maintained Ferrari’s promise with a solid run close to the top three. Verstappen ultimately finished sixth for Red Bull, two-tenths off Norris, in what looked a more encouraging Friday compared to the team’s struggles at Monza last year.
Williams’ Alex Albon impressed again in seventh, followed by Nico Hulkenberg for Sauber. The second Red Bull of Yuki Tsunoda and Mercedes’ George Russell completed the top ten.
Further back, Zandvoort podium finisher Isack Hadjar had a quieter outing in 11th. Aston Martin and Alpine both endured subdued sessions, suggesting they face another uphill battle this weekend.
With long-run simulations dominating the final 20 minutes of the running, the order at the front remained unchanged.
Norris will take confidence from topping the day’s headline times, but Ferrari’s pace – particularly Leclerc’s recovery – suggests a close fight looms for qualifying.
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