McLaren sweeps Friday’s Imola GP practice as Piastri leads Norris in FP2, Hadjar crashes

Full 2025 Emilia Romagna Grand Prix FP2 Results – McLaren maintained their impressive form in second Imola GP practice with Oscar Piastri leading his teammate Lando Norris once again.

As the sun dipped over the historic Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari, the hour-long session unfolded with drama, technical intrigue and a late-session crash involving Isack Hadjar that brought proceedings to a premature halt.

Oscar Piastri set the fastest lap in Friday’s Imola GP practice with a time of 1:15.293 edging out his teammate Lando Norris with a mere 0.025 seconds, cementing a commanding 1-2 for the Woking-based outfit.

Behind the leading McLarens, Pierre Gasly produced a remarkable performance for Alpine to secure third place, 0.276 seconds off the benchmark.

Gasly’s performance was notably ahead of the rest of the chasing pack with a gap of over a tenth to George Russell in fourth, indicating that Alpine could be a dark horse for the remainder of the weekend.

Reigning world champion Max Verstappen rounded out the top five for Red Bull, 0.442 seconds behind Piastri. The Dutchman’s session was characterized by frustration as he reported issues with the car including unusual sensations when pressing the accelerator and complaints about loose components in the cockpit.

Ferrari, racing on home soil and with high expectations from the passionate tifosi, endured a challenging session. Charles Leclerc led the Scuderia charge in sixth, 0.475 seconds off the pace while his teammate Lewis Hamilton could only manage 11th, 0.650 seconds down.

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Both drivers reported significant brake issues with Leclerc describing the situation as “horrendous” over team radio. The brake problems appeared to compromise their ability to attack the corners with confidence a critical factor at a circuit as technical and unforgiving as Imola.

Ferrari’s struggles were compounded by the fact that despite their upgrades and home advantage, they were unable to match the pace of their main rivals, raising questions about their competitiveness for the rest of the weekend.

The second Imola GP practice saw a major incident involving Racing Bulls rookie Isack Hadjar who crashed at the Tamburello Chicane with just seven minutes remaining. Hadjar lost control of his car while attacking the first chicane, spun off and hit the barriers.

Although he managed to get the car running again, he became beached in the gravel trap while attempting to rejoin the circuit bringing out the red flag and ending the session early.

Despite the crash Hadjar’s earlier efforts were impressive as he set the seventh fastest time of the session, just 0.499 seconds off Piastri’s benchmark.

Red Bull’s Yuki Tsunoda finished eighth while Williams enjoyed a quietly productive session with Alexander Albon and Carlos Sainz finishing ninth and tenth, respectively.

2025 Emilia Romagna Grand Prix FP2 Results