Oscar Piastri led a McLaren one-two for the second session in a row at Imola.
There was little to separate the two McLaren drivers. Piastri ended up just two hundredths of a second ahead of Norris, but appeared to lose time when he caught traffic at the end of his lap.
Pierre Gasly impressed by emerging on top of a tightly-knit pack to set the third-fastest time for Alpine. However Ferrari endured a tough session at their first home race of the year.
Charles Leclerc was sixth-fastest, almost half a second off the pace, while Lewis Hamilton was outside the top 10. Both drivers reported similar concerns on their radios.
“These brakes are a problem mate,” Hamilton told race engineer Riccardo Adami at one stage. Leclerc called his “horrendous” and indicated he was particularly unhappy with the SF-25’s turn-in at high-speed corners. “We need to work on the entry of five [Villeneuve], nine [Piratella], 11 [Acque Minerali],” he said. “It’s critical, I would say.”
Compounding Ferrari’s frustrating day, the team is under investigation for a procedural error when changing the front tyre pressures on Leclerc’s car during the first practice session.
George Russell put up the fourth-fastest time, narrowly ahead of Max Verstappen. Yuki Tsunoda was less than a tenth of a second slower than his team mate, but with the times so close, Leclerc and Isack Hadjar separated the two Red Bulls. The Williams pair completed the top 10.
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For the second session in a row, Fernando Alonso was held up by a rival, but the stewards deemed no investigation was necessary. This time it was the returning Franco Colapinto who held him up on the way into Tamburello. The second Alpine driver placed 13th.
Gabriel Bortoleto resumed practice following his crash at the end of the first session and set the 16th-fastest time. However he is under investigation for a potential yellow flag infringement.
For the second session in a row, the red flags flew in the final minutes after one of the rookies went off. This time it was Isack Hadjar, who hit a barrier at the exit of Tamburello, and though he was able to get moving again he became stuck in the gravel trap.
2025 Emilia Romagna Grand Prix Grand Prix second practice result
P. | # | Driver | Team | Model | Time | Gap |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 81 | Oscar Piastri | McLaren-Mercedes | MCL39 | 1’15.293 | |
2 | 4 | Lando Norris | McLaren-Mercedes | MCL39 | 1’15.318 | 0.025 |
3 | 10 | Pierre Gasly | Alpine-Renault | A525 | 1’15.569 | 0.276 |
4 | 63 | George Russell | Mercedes | W16 | 1’15.693 | 0.400 |
5 | 1 | Max Verstappen | Red Bull-Honda RBPT | RB21 | 1’15.735 | 0.442 |
6 | 16 | Charles Leclerc | Ferrari | SF-25 | 1’15.768 | 0.475 |
7 | 6 | Isack Hadjar | Racing Bulls-Honda RBPT | 02 | 1’15.792 | 0.499 |
8 | 22 | Yuki Tsunoda | Red Bull-Honda RBPT | RB21 | 1’15.827 | 0.534 |
9 | 23 | Alexander Albon | Williams-Mercedes | FW47 | 1’15.916 | 0.623 |
10 | 55 | Carlos Sainz Jnr | Williams-Mercedes | FW47 | 1’15.934 | 0.641 |
11 | 44 | Lewis Hamilton | Ferrari | SF-25 | 1’15.943 | 0.650 |
12 | 87 | Oliver Bearman | Haas-Ferrari | VF-25 | 1’16.009 | 0.716 |
13 | 43 | Franco Colapinto | Alpine-Renault | A525 | 1’16.044 | 0.751 |
14 | 14 | Fernando Alonso | Aston Martin-Mercedes | AMR25 | 1’16.220 | 0.927 |
15 | 30 | Liam Lawson | Racing Bulls-Honda RBPT | 02 | 1’16.255 | 0.962 |
16 | 5 | Gabriel Bortoleto | Sauber-Ferrari | C45 | 1’16.339 | 1.046 |
17 | 18 | Lance Stroll | Aston Martin-Mercedes | AMR25 | 1’16.341 | 1.048 |
18 | 12 | Andrea Kimi Antonelli | Mercedes | W16 | 1’16.406 | 1.113 |
19 | 27 | Nico Hulkenberg | Sauber-Ferrari | C45 | 1’16.419 | 1.126 |
20 | 31 | Esteban Ocon | Haas-Ferrari | VF-25 | 1’16.420 | 1.127 |
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2025 Emilia Romagna Grand Prix
- Red Bull are further off their 2024 pace than any team at Imola
- Bortoleto avoids penalty as stewards give him “benefit of the doubt”
- “Tiniest” set-up changes caused huge deterioration in handling – Hamilton
- Not just McLaren drivers in fight for Imola pole position – Piastri
- Gasly damaged front wing and floor hitting rabbit in first practice