Lewis Hamilton led a Ferrari 1-2 in Free Practice 2 for the Azerbaijan Grand Prix as Lando Norris’ session came to an early end after hitting the barrier.
Hamilton’s 1m 41.293s left him 0.074s clear of Charles Leclerc in the final classification as the McLarens of Norris and Oscar Piastri struggled for performance throughout, finishing only 10th and 12th respectively.
Even in the opening minutes the Baku run-off areas were put into use, Liam Lawson running deep at the downhill left-hander of Turn 15, with Hamilton doing the same at Turn 7 as drivers explored the limits for the second one-hour session.
Having spent a large portion of the opening session in the garage while a power unit issue was rectified, Piastri hit the track almost immediately in FP2 with the soft Pirelli tyre, posting a 1m 43.307s on his first flying lap that put him to the top of the times initially.
But the times soon began to tumble as more rubber was put down on the circuit and drivers utilised the softest compound, with Norris’ leading lap from FP1 easily beaten inside the opening 10 minutes.
After the opening flurry Norris was left fastest with a 1m 42.199s, fractionally faster than Leclerc, the Ferrari driver having taken pole position for the last four editions of the Azerbaijan GP and showing his prowess again around the street circuit, becoming the first driver to dip below the 1m 42s mark with a 1m 41.786s.
Team mate Hamilton slotted into second less than two-tenths behind before jumping to the top with a 1m 41.543s on the 20-minute mark, both laps having been achieved on the medium rubber to give teams a possible tyre conundrum ahead of Qualifying on Saturday.
Norris’ session then unravelled at the halfway point, the McLaren driver striking the wall on the exit of Turn 4 which damaged his left-rear suspension, and although the Briton was able to recover back to the pits, he remained in the garage until the chequered flag.
Just minutes later, Drivers’ Championship leader Piastri joined his team mate in the pits having glanced the Tecpro barrier at Turn 15 before being sent on his way after precautionary checks.
Meanwhile, Leclerc moved back to the top of the times with a 1m 41.367s as the Ferraris engaged in their own personal duel, Hamilton going fastest on a 1m 41.293s on the softs with just over 10 minutes left for the fastest lap of the day.
Mercedes’ George Russell finished best of the rest, just under half a second behind Hamilton, and ahead of team mate Kimi Antonelli, Haas’ Ollie Bearman, Max Verstappen (Red Bull) and Lawson (Racing Bulls).
Esteban Ocon completed a positive day for Haas in eighth from Alex Albon, Norris and the second Williams of Carlos Sainz.
Piastri finished 12th but was placed under investigation for a yellow flag infringement to be investigated after the session, from Isack Hadjar (Racing Bulls), Yuki Tsunoda (Red Bull) and Gabriel Bortoleto (Kick Sauber).
The order was completed by Alpine’s Pierre Gasly, Lance Stroll (Aston Martin), Nico Hulkenberg (Kick Sauber), the second Aston martin of Fernando Alonso and Franco Colapinto, the Alpine driver two seconds off the pace.
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