Norris snatches FP2 top spot from Russell by 0.009s at Barcelona GP

Lando Norris claimed the fastest time in second practice at the Formula 1 Barcelona-Catalunya Grand Prix on Friday, beating George Russell by a mere 0.009 seconds with a 1m15.426s lap on soft tyres. Oscar Piastri finished third, just 0.06s off his McLaren team-mate, underlining a significant step forward for the team after a difficult Monaco weekend.

Norris had missed the opening practice session, with McLaren reserve Leonardo Fornaroli taking his seat for his first-ever F1 session appearance. Russell, who had headlined FP1, briefly held the advantage in FP2 after switching to softs and overturning the pace set by Piastri — who had topped the order on mediums through the first 30 minutes. Norris then produced his soft-tyre effort to snatch top spot by less than a hundredth of a second.

Charles Leclerc was fourth, 0.373s off the pace, as Ferrari continued to evaluate a raft of updates brought to Spain. The team introduced a new front wing for the weekend, though it required several adjustments during the session after Lewis Hamilton reported “dragging” on the straights, prompting Ferrari’s mechanics to make quick tweaks at the garage.

Championship leader Kimi Antonelli was fifth, 0.589s adrift of Norris, though the Mercedes teenager was among the earlier drivers to switch to soft tyres. Antonelli reported discomfort with a long brake pedal, affecting his confidence into corners. He was one of seven drivers who gave up their seat in FP1, with Frederik Vesti having driven for Mercedes in the earlier session.

Max Verstappen and Arvid Lindblad were the only other drivers within a second of Norris’ benchmark, with Audi’s Gabriel Bortoleto a further two tenths back. Hamilton, who reported heavy tyre degradation late in the session, ended up ninth fastest.

Isack Hadjar rounded out the top ten, narrowly avoiding contact with Sergio Perez after the Cadillac driver turned in on him during the session. Widespread tyre wear across the longer runs suggests the race may not follow the typical one-stop strategy, adding an extra layer of strategic complexity heading into qualifying.