The second practice session was extended by half an hour following the opening session’s curtailment as technical issues emerged with the circuit’s CCTV system.
This left the teams, who had managed only the most cursory of laps in FP1, with much in the way of data to gather ahead of Saturday’s preparations for qualifying.
Charles Leclerc was first to bother the stopwatch, setting the opening benchmark of a 1m16.564s on the medium tyres, but the Ferrari driver was soon usurped as Fernando Alonso and Valtteri Bottas threw their first efforts into the fray.
Max Verstappen then posted a 1m15.333s despite submitting complaints about his Red Bull’s downshifts, taking the times down into the 1m14s with a 1m14.726s.
Leclerc then returned to the top and slotted in a 1m14.576s, before taking another two tenths out of his best time. His team-mate Carlos Sainz found even more time with a 1m14.196s, as the Ferraris found pace on their soft-tyre running.
A tenth uncovered by Leclerc placed the Monegasque back on top of the charts, where he remained after the opening half-hour; the times were froz …