Saudi Arabian GP: Norris Fastest, Tsunoda Crashes in Practice

Lando Norris, driving for McLaren, set the fastest time in the second practice session at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, closely followed by his teammate Oscar Piastri. The session saw a temporary halt when Yuki Tsunoda of Red Bull crashed.

Tsunoda`s crash occurred towards the session`s end, with just nine minutes remaining. He hit both the inside and outside walls at the final corner, causing significant damage to the front-right of his car and requiring substantial repair work overnight for his mechanics.

Despite the crash, Tsunoda finished the session as the sixth fastest driver, behind Charles Leclerc of Ferrari and Carlos Sainz of Williams.

Tsunoda admitted, `I turned in too much and clipped the inside wall with my wheel. It caused damage, and I lost control. I apologize to the team. The car pace was promising, so it`s a shame.`

McLaren appears to be the team to beat in Jeddah, with Norris outpacing Piastri by 0.163 seconds. Norris seemed comfortable throughout the practice, while Piastri was among several drivers who brushed the wall.

Max Verstappen of Red Bull was third fastest, 0.280 seconds behind Norris. Red Bull seems more competitive in Saudi Arabia compared to Bahrain, on a circuit where driver skill can make a significant impact.

Charles Leclerc finished in fourth place, half a second behind Norris, and significantly ahead of his Ferrari teammate Lewis Hamilton, who ended up in 13th position, 1.1 seconds off the pace.

Hamilton was investigated for potentially impeding Alex Albon of Williams in the high-speed first sector, but stewards decided no further action was necessary.

Norris currently leads the Drivers` Championship by three points over Piastri, with Verstappen trailing by eight points and George Russell by 14.

George Russell could only manage seventh place, as Mercedes struggled to optimize the soft tires. Pierre Gasly, who was fastest in the first practice, finished eighth, followed by Nico Hulkenberg and Alex Albon.

Gabriel Bortoleto of Sauber did not participate in the second practice due to a water leak issue.

Norris commented, `It was a decent first day. It`s always chaotic here because of the speed and the proximity of the walls. Today was more about working on my driving and gaining confidence than focusing on car setup.`

He added, `It`s a good start to the weekend. Productive, building confidence and feeling. We are on the right track. We feel confident, but the others are close behind. I was hoping for a slightly larger gap. We know we are fast and have a great car, but we are not completely comfortable yet.`

Red Bull seems to be benefiting from the smoother, high-speed Jeddah circuit and are McLaren`s closest rivals. However, Verstappen indicated that `there`s quite a bit of work to do`.

Verstappen explained, `We experimented with different car setups, trying to find a new direction. We learned a lot. I`m still not where I want to be. I don`t focus too much on the gaps, but on the feeling in the car. Our single-lap pace is better, but long runs remain challenging.`

Ferrari`s pace remains somewhat unclear. Leclerc was fastest on medium tires but faced traffic, eventually finishing fourth fastest. Hamilton has work to do to close the six-tenths gap to Leclerc, especially with the top 11 drivers being within just one second of each other.

George Russell described his session as `a bit messy` and mentioned Mercedes was `worse off` compared to FP1 but believes they can improve. Tire optimization is key, and both Mercedes drivers tested different approaches to learn more.

Russell was `intrigued` about their long-run pace but the session-ending red flag prevented them from assessing it. He anticipates `a close battle` among the chasing teams, noting McLaren`s strong performance.

Saudi Arabian GP Practice Two Timesheet