Oscar Piastri tops Singapore Grand Prix FP2 as Lando Norris and Charles Leclerc collide

Follow us on Google Discover

Oscar Piastri found himself back on top during the Singapore Grand Prix FP2 session, after a difficult weekend last time out in Baku.

Piastri needs a recovery weekend after the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, where he found himself in the Turn 3 barrier on the opening lap.

Despite earlier struggles in FP1, the Aussie found himself back at the top of the time sheets, leading from Isack Hadjar and Max Verstappen.

The rookies struggled in the earlier part of the session, with both Gabriel Bortoleto and Kimi Antonelli going down the Turn 14 run off area in the early stages of FP2.

With slightly cooler temperatures and track really rubbering in, drivers had optimal grip for some flying qualifying laps, and the McLarens were able to take an early lead.

The track began to ramp up as the session progressed, with Esteban Ocon and Oliver Bearman finding themselves first and third respectively at the halfway point of FP2.

The session was heavily disrupted by two red flags, which caused over 22 minutes of delays to the most pivotal practices of the weekend.

Read more: Singapore Grand Prix: how to watch, UK timings and weather as McLaren target championship victory

George Russell causes red flag with heavy Turn 16 crash

George Russell had a nasty crash into the barriers at Turn 16, smashing the whole of his front wing off his Mercedes and puncturing his front left tyre.

Russell described the incident as “weird” after he struggled with a snap of oversteer, which, despite catching the car, sent him flying head-on into the barrier.

The incident caused a red flag during the session, due to a large amount of debris sitting just off circuit on the chicane.

Despite looking like they were going to send him back out, the red flag ended Russell’s session, with the engineering team making quick work of taking the car apart to resolve the issue.

Russell will face a significant hit to preparing for both qualifying and the race, with the Brit losing a quick soft tyre run on low fuel and a high fuel practice that could prove vital for the weekend.

The FP2 session is the most representative of all three practice sessions, due to the similar lighting and heat conditions that will be seen in qualifying and the grand prix.

Liam Lawson experiences a heavy shunt at Turn 17 exit

Liam Lawson also found himself in the barrier in a similar place to Russell, losing the rear of his Racing Bulls coming out of Turn 17.

The Kiwi went wide coming through the chicane, resulting in him losing control and smashing into the concrete barrier.

He was able to pull the car back across the track to the pit lane entry, but with significant damage to the left side of his car, Lawson was unable to get the Racing Bulls back to the security of their pit box.

This incident caused the second red flag of FP2 and initially some confusion, with the race stewards closing the pit lane entry due to the stranded car.

A few cars opted to continue with another lap due to the order, before the pit lane entry was quickly reopened.

Following the session resumption, Norris was hit by Charles Leclerc as the Ferrari was released into the path of the McLaren.

Norris appeared to try and speed up to avoid an incident, but Leclerc went straight into the side of the Brit, pushing him into the concrete pit wall.

Leclerc will be required to visit the stewards after FP2 due to the unsafe release.

Lando Norris not happy with his driving after struggling for pace

Lando Norris appeared dejected towards the end of the session, falling back from Piastri by almost half a second.

The Brit has struggled for pace all day, with his race engineer Will Joseph offering ways that he could speed up in the remaining few minutes.

Norris appeared to refuse McLaren’s running plan, saying: “But my car’s not half a second off, is it? My driving’s half a second off”.

It’s a vital weekend for Norris’ championship push on his teammate Oscar Piastri, who leads the drivers’ title by 25 points.