The current Formula 1 Champion, Max Verstappen, was only able to secure second place in terms of speed, quite a distance behind Leclerc, while Carlis Sainz came in third.
Verstappen had to sit out for 20 minutes during FP2 because the floor of his RB20 needed to be replaced after he damaged it by driving over a kerb in the first practice session.
Although it is still too early to make a definitive judgment, Ferrari seems to have the advantage in qualifying, at least for now. However, Verstappen is expected to be the driver to beat in terms of race pace on Sunday, which sets the stage for an interesting race in Australia.
Lance Stroll and Fernando Alonso rounded out the top five, showing that the Green cars also performed well on the Albert Park circuit.
On the other hand, Mercedes appeared to be struggling, especially Lewis Hamilton, while George Russell managed to secure sixth place, outperforming his teammate who finished in 18th.
The McLarens seemed to be lagging behind the Mercedes, specifically Russell, while Yuki Tsunoda showcased a strong performance in the RB, once again outpacing his teammate Daniel Ricciardo.
FP1 was a chaotic session, with drivers losing control of their cars throughout the track and many damaging their floors. Unfortunately, Alex Albon ended up crashing into the wall and had to sit out for FP2. Not an ideal start for the Thai driver’s race weekend in Australia.
The concerning news for Williams is that they do not have a spare chassis with them in Melbourne, which could be problematic if Albon’s chassis turns out to be damaged.
The top seven drivers were separated by only a tenth of a second in the first practice session, so it is hoped that this close competition will continue throughout the rest of the weekend. However, it is likely that Verstappen and Red Bull have yet to fully unleash their potential, so expect them to dominate.
Ferrari also showed promise with Leclerc, although Sainz was still adjusting to his car with some modifications made to his seat and seat belts to enhance his comfort as he is not fully recovered yet.
With Lando Norris setting the fastest time, it appears that McLaren currently has the upper hand over Mercedes this weekend. Hamilton did not seem to be in sync with his W15, unlike Russell who once again performed better. However, this changed by the end of FP2.
The weather conditions remained clear for FP2, albeit slightly warmer, with ambient temperatures reaching 20 degrees Celsius and track temperatures rising to 37 degrees.
While most drivers quickly took to the track, Verstappen remained in the garage, with his RB20 raised on stands as the mechanics worked on repairing the floor that he damaged in FP1.
Another disappointed spectator this afternoon 😖
Max Verstappen has yet to venture out – his car is being fixed after sustaining damage to the floor in FP1#AusGP pic.twitter.com/wcexRHbV3x
– Formula 1 (@F1) March 22, 2024
Hamilton quickly experienced a slight loss of control as he exited Turn 1, the same spot where he had a shaky moment during FP1, while still working to find his comfort zone in his W15 car.
If you missed it, take a look at Hamilton’s off-track incident in FP1 below.
Catch up on all the major highlights from a thrilling first session of the weekend at Albert Park 🎥👇#F1 #AusGP
— Formula 1 (@F1) March 22, 2024
All the drivers began the session using Medium tires, with Alonso initially leading the pack, followed by Norris and Stroll in second and third place, respectively. This occurred ten minutes into the session.
Leclerc also joined the group of drivers who had a moment off the track, going off at Turn 10, with his SF-24 car hitting the curbs quite forcefully.
The order quickly changed, with Leclerc taking the top spot, over four tenths of a second faster than Sergio Perez in second place, while Alonso dropped to third. This happened 15 minutes into the session.
And just to give Williams team another scare, Logan Sargeant spun 360 degrees while exiting Turn 11, narrowly avoiding hitting the wall or a nearby car.
As the session approached the 20-minute mark, Verstappen prepared to get into his car, with the mechanics making final adjustments.
Qualifying runs soon began, with Alonso being the first to switch to Soft tires and go out for a qualifying run. However, he only managed to secure the second fastest time, unable to surpass Leclerc’s previous time set on Medium tires. It was a messy lap for the Spaniard, as he hit the curbs hard at Turn 8, but he managed to continue unlike Albon earlier.
Stroll, also on a qualifying run with Soft tires, ended up going faster than his teammate but made a mistake in the penultimate corner, resulting in a ninth-place finish.
With 37 minutes remaining, Verstappen finally took to the track on Medium tires, but his first timed lap only placed him in 19th position.
Look who’s here 👋
Max Verstappen has joined us, with 35 minutes left in the session#F1 #AusGP pic.twitter.com/sKUC9SqJgp
— Formula 1 (@F1) March 22, 2024
Russell, in the middle of the session, experienced a moment at Turn 1, similar to Hamilton’s earlier incident. There were reports of tailwinds in that area, but Mercedes is struggling with the instability of their cars’ rear end.
The drivers continued with their qualifying simulations, with more of them opting to use the Soft tires. Multiple drivers took turns occupying the top position.
Verstappen had an incident with Zhou Guanyu, which left him dissatisfied. A replay of the team radio revealed that Zhou’s engineer warned him about the approaching Red Bull, but it was too late. “Too late bro,” Zhou remarked.
Hamilton’s difficulties with his W15 persisted, as he had another off-track moment with 25 minutes remaining and decided to abandon his first qualifying run.
With 20 minutes left, Verstappen finally began his qualifying run on the Soft tires, but his initial time was only good enough for third place, with Leclerc in first and Sainz in second at that point.
After a brief pit stop and a second run, the triple F1 Champion managed to improve his time and move up to second place, but still couldn’t match Leclerc’s time.
Once the qualifying runs were completed, the teams shifted their focus to race simulations in the final ten minutes of the session.
Leclerc encountered a moment at Turn 1, losing control of his SF-24 due to the tailwind and veering straight into the run-off area.
Hamilton then inquired with his team about the times set by other drivers. The engineer’s feedback was not encouraging, leading the Briton to respond, “Something is wrong.”
Shortly after, Stroll had another incident, going off track and into the run-off area on the second-to-last lap after heavily locking up.
Leclerc set a lap time of 1:17.277 to claim the fastest time, with Verstappen coming in second, 0.381s behind. However, Leclerc’s time was still over half a second slower than Verstappen’s pole time at the same venue in 2023.
Sainz was just half a tenth slower than Verstappen in third place, and 0.115s faster than Stroll, who secured the fourth fastest time in the Aston Martin.
Alonso was nearly one tenth behind his teammate in fifth place, and only 0.039s faster than Russell, who finished sixth in the Mercedes.
Oscar Piastri was the quicker of the McLaren drivers, placing seventh and trailing the pace by 0.800s, with Perez in the second Red Bull just 0.013s behind in eighth place.
Lando Norris took ninth place, 0.078s slower than his teammate, and 0.033s faster than Tsunoda in tenth.
Ricciardo settled for 12th place, behind the impressive Zhou in 11th, while Hamilton was 1.557s off the pace in 18th position, failing to achieve a satisfactory qualifying simulation.