***Editors note: RacerViews coverage of the 2024 Formula 1 World Championship will be delayed due to coverage of the WEC Lone Star LeMans at Circuit of the Americas***
Friday’s free practice running has come to a close as Mercedes’s Lewis Hamilton topped the timesheets by a scant 0.003s over Lando Norris. With only a tenth and half separating the top five after the hour of running, it’s still anyone’s game as McLaren and Ferrari stayed tight to one another as Red Bull slipped back in the pecking order after a strong FP1.
HIGHLIGHTS: Enjoy the FP2 action from Monza as Hamilton edges out Norris
As the field jumped on track to start the session, George Russell was forced t wait as Mercedes mechanics scrambled to reassemble his previously crashed W15 after Kimi Antonelli’s off track excursion in FP1. With most drivers opting to run medium compound tires it was Charles LeClerc who set the early pace ahead of Carlos Sainz much to the joy of the watching Tifosi.
Soon though, soft tires were put on most cars as teams began qualifying runs that say Lando Norris shoot to the top of the timesheet before being pushed out by Hamilton as the two remained 1-2 for the rest of the session.
Midway through the session, red-flags flew again as the Haas of Kevin Magnussen crashed at the second Lesmo, further adding to the dismal weekend for the Dane as he compounded his FP1 penalty for impeding. The 12-minute pause for the recovery efforts saw drivers quickly queue at the exit of pit lane for one final scramble for laps.
While many drivers and teams had switched to long run testing, Sergio Perez remained off sync from the field, as his Red Bull was delayed with a gearbox issue that forced him to run quick lap testing amongst the longer runs.
Despite the additional final runs, Hamilton would hold on to the top spot as Norris, Sainz, Piastri, and LeClerc made up the top-5. George Russell, missing the majority of FP2, set the sixth quickest run of the afternoon and was followed by Nico Hulkenberg, Daniel Ricciardo, Fernando Alonso, and Lance Stroll.
Thus concludes Friday’s running, tune in tomorrow at 12:30 local time for the final practice in Monza ahead of qualifying.
Free Practice 1 Report: CLICK HERE
FORMULA 1 PIRELLI GRAN PREMIO D’ITALIA 2024 Schedule
| Date | Session | Time (Local Circuit) |
| August 30th | Practice 1 | 13:30 – 14:30 |
| Practice 2 | 17:00 – 18:00 | |
| August 31st | Practice 3 | 12:30 – 1:30 |
| Qualifying | 16:00 – 17:00 | |
| Sept. 1st | Race | 15:00 |
Free Practice 2 Results
Pos | No | Driver | Car | Time | Gap | Laps |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 44 | Lewis Hamilton | Mercedes | 1:20.738 | 24 | |
2 | 4 | Lando Norris | McLaren Mercedes | 1:20.741 | +0.003s | 23 |
3 | 55 | Carlos Sainz | Ferrari | 1:20.841 | +0.103s | 27 |
4 | 81 | Oscar Piastri | McLaren Mercedes | 1:20.858 | +0.120s | 24 |
5 | 16 | Charles Leclerc | Ferrari | 1:20.892 | +0.154s | 26 |
6 | 63 | George Russell | Mercedes | 1:21.086 | +0.348s | 20 |
7 | 27 | Nico Hulkenberg | Haas Ferrari | 1:21.140 | +0.402s | 25 |
8 | 3 | Daniel Ricciardo | RB Honda RBPT | 1:21.300 | +0.562s | 23 |
9 | 14 | Fernando Alonso | Aston Martin Aramco Mercedes | 1:21.316 | +0.578s | 24 |
10 | 18 | Lance Stroll | Aston Martin Aramco Mercedes | 1:21.363 | +0.625s | 27 |
11 | 77 | Valtteri Bottas | Kick Sauber Ferrari | 1:21.461 | +0.723s | 25 |
12 | 20 | Kevin Magnussen | Haas Ferrari | 1:21.499 | +0.761s | 11 |
13 | 23 | Alexander Albon | Williams Mercedes | 1:21.592 | +0.854s | 25 |
14 | 1 | Max Verstappen | Red Bull Racing Honda RBPT | 1:21.610 | +0.872s | 24 |
15 | 11 | Sergio Perez | Red Bull Racing Honda RBPT | 1:21.678 | +0.940s | 14 |
16 | 22 | Yuki Tsunoda | RB Honda RBPT | 1:21.735 | +0.997s | 20 |
17 | 43 | Franco Colapinto | Williams Mercedes | 1:21.784 | +1.046s | 20 |
18 | 10 | Pierre Gasly | Alpine Renault | 1:21.819 | +1.081s | 23 |
19 | 31 | Esteban Ocon | Alpine Renault | 1:21.867 | +1.129s | 22 |
20 | 24 | Zhou Guanyu | Kick Sauber Ferrari | 1:22.223 | +1.485s | 27 |
