Engines roared as F1 FP2 at the 2025 Japanese Grand Prix got underway. Drivers wasted no time pushing the limits of what the cars can do in preparation for Sunday’s race. Oscar Piastri topped the timesheets, with his teammate Lando Norris and rookie Isaac Hadjar not far behind.
FP2 Gets Underway!
The lights went green for the second practice of the race weekend. It did not take long before we heard a radio message from Carlos Sainz stating, ‘Something is wrong with the car; it is bouncing like crazy.” Sainz was asked to pit, and his car was taken into the garage for his team to inspect.
We saw a mix of tyre compounds in this practice. For instance, some teams, such as Mercedes and Ferrari, opted for hard compounds, while others, like McLaren, had one driver on hards and the other on mediums.
Disaster for Doohan!
The red flag was out for Jack Doohan who had a hefty crash into the first turn of the Suzuka Circuit, after dipping a wheel onto the grass and spinning. He climbed out of the cockpit, his car in ruins, but he seemed to have escaped any serious injury. This is not what Doohan would’ve wanted. He had missed out on FP1 and was hoping to claim this practice session as a good judgement for this weekend’s events to come.
It took quite a long time to clear this up, with the amount of debris left behind. Time was quickly slipping away for those who had not had the chance to get out yet.
FP2 Gets Underway… Again.
With just half of the session time remaining, who would prevail as our fastest in the second practice? Now, the drivers were keen to get out, with a large queue forming at the end of the pit lane. The queue was led by McLaren, who kept the same tyres as earlier in the session.
Red Flag Part Two!
The second red flag of the session was brought on by Fernando Alonso. The Spaniard’s car was in one piece but firmly beached in the gravel. He (much like Doohan) dipped a wheel onto the grass, sending him flying into the gravel trap.
Practice 2 Resumes!
For the third time in this session, drivers were keen to get onto the track once again. This time, the Ferrari of Charles Leclerc led the way on the soft compound.
With little time left of the session, George Russell decided to play sillies, overtaking a car just after the pit lane exit. He came close to taking on another and kicked up some dust, which would not have impressed the other drivers.
The red flags are back!
Just as Norris and Piastri put both McLarens in the top three, the flags were back out yet again. Smoke on the track indicated a potential grass fire, which was quickly put out, and the session resumed.
The final run…
The Ferrari of Charles Leclerc once again led the queue of traffic out of the pit lane. Both Mercedes drivers had switched now to the hards after being on the softs earlier. They abandoned their soft tyre timings, and so they had to put in new timings.
With five minutes to go and not much racing done, it was all to play for.
The 4th and final red flag.
Another fire near the track meant their session ended with a dismal amount of actual practice accomplished.
A hugely disappointing session for everyone, as drivers and teams would now struggle to give a good gauge on this weekend’s Grand Prix.
Who’s going to get pole in quali?
After FP1 and FP2 in the books at Suzuka, all eyes now turn to qualifying—set to get underway at 7AM UK time on Saturday, 5th April. Who will master the twisty figure-eight and take pole for the 2025 Japanese Grand Prix? We’ll find out soon.
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Feature Image Credit: Red Bull Content Pool