Kimi Antonelli recorded the fastest time in Free Practice 2 for the Spanish Grand Prix, held at the new Madring circuit. The Mercedes driver posted a 1:33.662 lap, leading a competitive session. His performance placed him ahead of both Ferrari cars, securing Mercedes’ strong showing on Friday.
Charles Leclerc finished second, 0.113 seconds behind Antonelli, with his Ferrari teammate Lewis Hamilton in third, just 0.149 seconds off the pace. This positioned both Ferrari drivers within close proximity to the top spot.
The session was interrupted by a red flag after Racing Bulls driver Arvid Lindblad crashed at Turn 13. Lindblad lost the rear axle of his car, impacting the right-hand-side barriers heavily. He was uninjured, but the car sustained significant damage.
Lindblad had been running an impressive fourth fastest at the time of his incident, with a lap time of 1:33.890. The recovery of his damaged car and barrier repairs led to an approximately 15-minute stoppage. The session resumed with 12 minutes remaining.
George Russell, who topped Free Practice 1, finished fifth in FP2, 0.337 seconds behind Antonelli. Max Verstappen secured the sixth position for Red Bull, 0.401 seconds off the leading time. Verstappen had an earlier lap deleted due to track limits.
Oscar Piastri placed seventh for McLaren, followed by Yuki Tsunoda in the second Racing Bulls car. Esteban Ocon of Haas and Liam Lawson for Red Bull completed the top ten.
Fernando Alonso experienced a delayed start to FP2. His Aston Martin car required significant work in the garage due to a clutch issue that arose after practice starts in FP1. Alonso eventually joined the session, finishing 17th.
Reigning world champion Lando Norris faced a challenging session. He failed to record a representative lap time due to a gearbox issue, which kept his McLaren in the garage for most of FP2.
The Madring circuit, a new hybrid street layout around the IFEMA Exhibition Centre, features 22 corners and a length of 5.414 km. It includes a 550-meter section at Turn 12, known as ‘La Monumental,’ with a 24% banked corner.
Drivers continued to adapt to the new track, which combines public roads with purpose-built sections. The circuit’s narrow layout and concrete-lined roads presented a challenge, with Ollie Bearman also brushing a wall during the session.
