Friday Report -Norris holds firm in FP2 as Piastri ends a muted 11th

Lando Norris
© McLaren

Lando Norris set the tone for the final competitive Friday of the 2025 season by topping Abu Dhabi Grand Prix FP2, delivering a 1m23.083s lap on soft tyres that left him 0.363s clear of Max Verstappen. While Norris looked immediately comfortable around Yas Marina in the evening conditions, McLaren team-mate Oscar Piastri endured a more subdued session, finishing 11th and 0.68s off the benchmark.

Early in the hour, Oliver Bearman and Isack Hadjar briefly leading the timing screen by bolting on softs while most of the field completed routine medium-tyre runs. Their early push meant both Haas and Racing Bulls spent time at the top while Norris led the medium-shod runners. But once the heavier hitters switched to softs, Verstappen was first to set a representative time, logging a 1m23.446s — one that his future team-mate Hadjar fell two tenths short of moments later.

Mercedes then entered the frame. George Russell posted a 1m23.462s, briefly slotting into second, while Nico Hülkenberg matched that front-running pace for Sauber with a 1m23.550s. But the soft-tyre phase ultimately belonged to Norris. On his first qualifying-style attempt with the C5 compound, he pieced together a clean lap to produce his eventual session-leading 1m23.083s, immediately placing daylight between himself and Verstappen.

From that point onward, the field drifted to long-run preparation, leaving the order untouched. Piastri, meanwhile, spent much of the session addressing set-up inconsistencies after missing FP1 because Pato O’Ward had taken the car. McLaren made incremental adjustments to improve the MCL39’s balance, but the Australian’s 1m23.763s left him outside the top 10 as he continued trying to rediscover the rhythm that carried him to strong form in Qatar.

Behind the leading pair, Russell held third, while Bearman impressed with fourth after improving to a 1m23.501s on a second soft run. The Haas rookie reported that the VF-25 felt “insane” in the slower corners. Hulkenberg and Gabriel Bortoleto locked Sauber into the top six during the team’s final weekend before adopting the Audi name for 2026.

Hadjar finished seventh ahead of Charles Leclerc, while Fernando Alonso took ninth. Andrea Kimi Antonelli completed the top 10.

The field remained tightly compressed, with the top 16 separated by less than a second. Yuki Tsunoda, Liam Lawson and both Alpines rounded out the order in a session defined by small margins, evolving grip, and contrasting fortunes for the McLaren pair.