#FP2: Red Bull's Verstappen shrugs off issue to top second Miami practice session as Leclerc crashes late on

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FP2: Red Bull's Verstappen shrugs off issue to top second Miami practice session as Leclerc crashes late on

Max Verstappen set the fastest time of FP2 in Miami ahead of the Ferraris – though the reigning champion did complain of headrest issues throughout. As for third-placed Charles Leclerc, he brought out the only red flag of the session. Verstappen and Ferrari’s Leclerc swapped places at the top of the timesheets early on in FP2 as both lapped on mediums, but the Red Bull driver consolidated his position when soft-tyred running began and ultimately set the benchmark with a 1m 27.930s. The Dutchman, however, complained that his HANS protection device was uncomfortable throughout the session. FP1: Russell heads Mercedes 1-2 in opening practice session of the Miami Grand Prix Carlos Sainz finished second for Ferrari, four tenths off the pace, while his team mate Leclerc was third and under a tenth behind the Spaniard. Leclerc, however, brought out the only red flag of FP2 when he wrestled with a snap of oversteer, locked up and sent his Ferrari front-first into the barriers at Turn 7 with 10 minutes remaining. Sergio Perez aborted one flying lap as he almost collected the AlphaTauri of Nyck de Vries in the narrow Turn 14-15 chicane, and the Mexican ended up half a second off the pace and fourth, leaving Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso fifth overall and seven-tenths off the pace. 1 Max Verstappen VER Red Bull Racing 1:27.930 2 Carlos Sainz SAI Ferrari +0.385s 3 Charles Leclerc LEC Ferrari +0.468s 4 Sergio Perez PER Red Bull Racing +0.489s 5 Fernando Alonso ALO Aston Martin +0.730s Lando Norris briefly led the session when soft-tyred running began but the McLaren driver fell to P6, ahead of Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton. Lance Stroll took P8 for Aston Martin, a second off the pace, while Alpine’s Esteban Ocon was just 0.007s back in P9 and Alex Albon was a whisker off in P10 for Williams, with a brief lock-up hampering his qualifying simulation. Pierre Gasly finished 11th for Alpine, ahead of 12th-placed Kevin Magnussen. The Danish Haas driver spun and brushed the wall at Turn 11, avoiding damage to finish ahead of the Alfa Romeos: Zhou Guanyu in P13 and Valtteri Bottas in P14. HIGHLIGHTS: Watch the action from an interrupted first practice session in Miami This feature is currently not available because you need to provide consent to functional cookies. Please update your cookie preferences 2023 Miami GP FP2: Lucky escape for Magnussen as he spins and brushes the wall FP1 leader George Russell ran wide at Turn 11 just before Leclerc's Turn 7 crash and finished down in P15, ahead of McLaren’s Oscar Piastri. Next on the board was Haas’s Nico Hulkenberg, who crashed out of FP1 but made it to P17 in FP2 after a remarkable repair job by the team. AlphaTauri’s Yuki Tsunoda took P18 in front of his team mate De Vries, while home hero Logan Sargeant rounded out the standings for Williams, around two seconds off the pace. Watch the Miami GP live with F1 TV Pro For the Miami Grand Prix, F1 TV Pro is offering a 7-day free trial so you can test drive the service for free in selected countries (USA, Canada, Netherlands and Brazil). Jump in. Start your 7-day free trial now.* *Renews to full price unless cancelled. Web and app only. Excludes previous free trialists. T&cs apply. via Formula 1 News https://www.formula1.com

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Hulkenberg says he paid the price for unnecessary risk after crashing out of FP1

Nico Hulkenberg’s FP1 session ended in spectacular fashion as the Haas driver crashed out of the running. Despite that, he said it was a “good day” as the German driver turned in his first laps of Miami in an F1 car. Hulkenberg went wide at Turn 3 and slid into the barriers around halfway into the opening practice session at Miami, with his Haas coming to a stop with damage to the right-hand side. The team put in a shift to get him back out for FP2, where he completed 22 laps and finished 17th. FP2: Red Bull's Verstappen shrugs off issue to top second Miami practice session as Leclerc crashes late on “Yeah, I just wanted a bit too much too soon, and paid the price for it as it happens or as it is on street circuits,” began Hulkenberg. “Not ideal, it was a bit unnecessary there, but it happens unfortunately sometimes. “Luckily not too much damage and we picked things up in FP2 in a good spot actually. The car actually handles and fits quite well to this place. I like the track a lot too because it’s the first time out for me in a Formula 1 car, it’s quite technical, challenging, and yeah, had a good day despite the incident in [FP1].” The American team have brought upgrades to the VF-23 for their first home race of the season and Hulkenberg remarked that the new bits gave him a positive feeling at the end of a truncated Friday. “Yeah there was a big [update] for us today to learn about it and learn about some different runs and cross comparisons. I think it’s positive, definitely heading in the right direction. Obviously today and tonight we will exploit more with the data, analyse everything, and come up with the best package tomorrow.” READ MORE: Verstappen enjoys Friday practice after topping FP2 while team mate Perez laments tough start in Miami Looking ahead to Saturday, with qualifying for the 2023 Miami Grand Prix to come, Hulkenberg kept his cards close to his chest. “I think [a strong result is] possible but it’s tight and you have to really hit it on the head and make it stick. Gut feeling is that we have that potential and tomorrow will tell.” via Formula 1 News https://www.formula1.com

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HIGHLIGHTS: Watch the action from FP2 in Miami as Verstappen leads the way and Leclerc crashes

Max Verstappen topped the timesheets in his Red Bull during Friday’s second practice session for the Miami Grand Prix, while Ferrari rival Charles Leclerc sparked some late drama by crashing out. Having placed fourth in first practice, Verstappen worked his way down to a time of 1m 27.930s during FP2 to finish comfortably clear of Ferrari pair Carlos Sainz and Leclerc and team mate Sergio Perez. FP2: Red Bull's Verstappen shrugs off issue to top second Miami practice session as Leclerc crashes late on However, Leclerc gave the Ferrari mechanics some work to do overnight after losing control of his car through Turn 7, locking up and running into the barriers, causing significant front-end damage. Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso and McLaren’s Lando Norris followed in fifth and sixth respectively, with Lewis Hamilton dropping back to seventh after Mercedes recorded a one-two result earlier in the day. Elsewhere, Kevin Magnussen came close to repeating Haas team mate Nico Hulkenberg’s visit to the barriers in FP1 – the Dane going for a wild spin through the Turn 14/15 chicane but managing to continue on his way. Sergio Perez also came close to an incident with a slow-moving Nyck de Vries in the early stages of the session, while opening practice pace-setter George Russell was another to get caught up in traffic around the narrow Miami layout en route to a lowly 15th place. Check out the highlights from FP2 in Miami in the video player above. Watch the Miami GP live with F1 TV Pro For the Miami Grand Prix, F1 TV Pro is offering a 7-day free trial so you can test drive the service for free in selected countries (USA, Canada, Netherlands and Brazil). Jump in. Start your 7-day free trial now.* *Renews to full price unless cancelled. Web and app only. Excludes previous free trialists. T&cs apply. via Formula 1 News https://www.formula1.com

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WATCH: Ride onboard with Max Verstappen as he sets the fastest lap of the opening day in Miami

Max Verstappen was the fastest driver in Florida on Friday, as the Dutch driver led the way in the second practice session at this weekend’s Miami Grand Prix. On his qualifying simulation run in FP2, Verstappen set a time of 1m 27.930s, a blistering 0.468s quicker than his nearest rival, Carlos Sainz, in the Ferrari. FP2: Red Bull's Verstappen shrugs off issue to top second Miami practice session as Leclerc crashes late on Charles Leclerc was third quickest, while Verstappen’s team mate and championship rival, Sergio Perez, was down in fourth, 0.489s off the Dutch driver's pace. Click on the video player above to ride onboard with Verstappen on the fastest lap of the day, as he navigates his way through the Miami International Autodrome. via Formula 1 News https://www.formula1.com

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Verstappen enjoys Friday practice after topping FP2 while team mate Perez laments tough start in Miami

Red Bull’s duelling drivers had contrasting fortunes on the opening day of practice for the 2023 Miami Grand Prix as FP2 leader Max Verstappen said he had a "good day" and team mate Sergio Perez said he struggled throughout. After George Russell led FP1 ahead of Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton, Verstappen returned to the top of the timesheets in FP2 with a blistering effort ahead of Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz and his team mate Charles Leclerc, who crashed late in FP2 to bring out a red flag. READ MORE: Red Bull's Verstappen shrugs off issue to top second Miami practice session as Leclerc crashes late on “I think it was a good day," said the reigning champion. "Initially I think it was getting used to the track a bit with the new tarmac, I think it was really ramping up a lot throughout the day, but always felt good in the car and we had good balance out there." He added: "It’s still slippery off-line. I think on the driving line it is quite ok, but as soon as you go a little off-line, it is a lot less grip. But it is the same for everyone, but most importantly today we had a good balance in the car to start with, so I felt happy." Verstappen led Sainz in FP2 The Dutchman, who finished fourth and between the Ferraris in FP1, conceded that there was homework to do – adding that the skies could throw up some surprises later in the weekend. “I mean there’s still a few little things we want to look at,” continued Verstappen. “Ideally you want to be faster in every single corner, but that’s not always possible. We also have to see what the weather will do, but overall, a positive day.” As for Sergio Perez, who finished 11th in FP1 and improved to P4 in FP2, the Mexican driver was not so happy as he lamented a lack of grip and called his flying effort a “pretty bad” one given a lock-up in the final corner in second practice. MUST-SEE: Hulkenberg brings out the red flags during FP1 in Miami after slamming into the wall Perez finished fourth in FP2 and said he struggled to set a faster lap “I haven’t had the greatest of Fridays but my lap was also pretty bad," said Perez. "I locked up on the final corner, so there is quite a bit to come. I think together, with my driving, I am not driving really well today so I think that, if I’m able to improve my driving and get myself a bit more comfortable, it should be alright. “We’ve been trying a few [things] with the mechanical balance, and yeah, I think we learned quite a bit and in the long run I don’t think we managed to get a read because of the very few laps that we ended up doing out there, but generally I think we got a good baseline.” There’s still plenty of running to go with FP3 and qualifying on Saturday as Perez aims to bridge the six-point gap to Verstappen this weekend in Miami – but rain could threaten Red Bull's winning streak. Watch the Miami GP live with F1 TV Pro For the Miami Grand Prix, F1 TV Pro is offering a 7-day free trial so you can test drive the service for free in selected countries (USA, Canada, Netherlands and Brazil). Jump in. Start your 7-day free trial now.* *Renews to full price unless cancelled. Web and app only. Excludes previous free trialists. T&cs apply. via Formula 1 News https://www.formula1.com