Vettel Sets Pace Ahead of Verstappen in FP2 in Mexico

By FIA

Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel led the way in second practice for the Mexican Grand Prix edging Red Bull Racing’s Max Verstappen by 0.115s. Charles Leclerc was third 0.465s off the pace of his Ferrari team-mate.

In the opening phase of the 90-minute session, run on medium tyres, Vettel went quickest with a best time of 1:17.960, over two tenths of a second clear of Leclerc. The session was red-flagged was red-flagged after just a quarter of an hour, however, thanks to Red Bull Racing’s Alex Albon crashing out in Turn 7.

The Thai driver lost control on entry and slid wide across the run-off area. He hit the barriers hard with the right side of his car, causing substantial damage.

When the action resumed Verstappen, Lewis Hamilton and Valtteri Bottas slotted in from third to fifth respectively before Leclerc and Vettel moved to soft compound Pirellis for their qualifying simulations.

Leclerc initially went quickest with a lap of 1:17.072s but Vettel cleared that mark with ease, going quicker in all three sectors to post a table-topping time of 1:16.607. Verstappen then stole second place with his best time of 1:16.722.

Mercedes’ Valtteri Bottas was fourth fastest in the session, 0.614s off the pace and was 0.349s quicker than team-mate Lewis Hamilton who finished in fifth place.

Best of the rest in the session was Toro Rosso’s Daniil Kvyat with the Russian claiming sixth place close to the end of the session. His lap of 1:17.747 put him over two tenths of a second ahead of seventh-placed team-mate Pierre Gasly.

McLaren’s Carlos Sainz set the eighth-fastest time, almost two tenths faster than Renault’s Nico Hulkenberg and Lando Norris rounded out the top 10 in the second McLaren, 1.742s off the pace.

2019 FIA Formula One Mexican Grand Prix – Free Practice 2
1 Sebastian Vettel Ferrari 1:16.607
2 Max Verstappen Red Bull Racing 37 1:16.722 0.115
3 Charles Leclerc Ferrari 34 1:17.072 0.465
4 Valtteri Bottas Mercedes 39 1:17.221 0.614
5 Lewis Hamilton Mercedes 35 1:17.570 0.963
6 Daniil Kvyat Scuderia Toro Rosso 40 1:17.747 01.140
7 Pierre Gasly Scuderia Toro Rosso 39 1:18.003 01.396
8 Carlos Sainz McLaren 38 1:18.079 01.472
9 Nico Hulkenberg Renault 23 1:18.261 01.654
10 Lando Norris McLaren 36 1:18.349 01.742
11 Lance Stroll Racing Point 38 1:18.362 01.755
12 Sergio Perez Racing Point 34 1:18.366 01.759
13 Daniel Ricciardo Renault 34 1:18.380 01.773
14 Kimi Raikkonen Alfa Romeo Racing 37 1:18.681 02.074
15 Romain Grosjean Haas 37 1:18.766 02.159
16 Antonio Giovinazzi Alfa Romeo Racing 46 1:18.889 02.282
17 Kevin Magnussen Haas 37 1:19.306 02.699
18 George Russell Williams 36 1:19.968 03.361
19 Robert Kubica Williams 37 1:20.180 03.573
20 Alex Albon Red Bull Racing 5 1:21.665 05.058