Lando Norris set the pace in second practice at the Italian Grand Prix, edging Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc and Williams’ Carlos Sainz by less than a tenth of a second as the field closed up at Monza.
After retiring from last weekend’s Dutch Grand Prix, Norris is aiming to reignite his title challenge and cut into the 34-point lead of McLaren teammate Oscar Piastri.
Having ended first practice only sixth, Norris responded strongly in FP2, topping the times and impressing on long-run pace.
“Normally by this point we have a one-second gap on everyone, but at the moment it’s just a bit close for my liking,” Norris admitted. “Some small things to improve and for us to still be P1, I thought was good.
This is the complete opposite downforce level to Zandvoort, so it’s not a surprise we don’t look quite as strong here. The competitors catch up, but we’re in a reasonable place.”
The battle for pole looks finely poised, with less than two tenths covering the top four.
Ferrari shine at home, Hamilton and Verstappen close
Ferrari maintained their tradition of being contenders at Monza, Leclerc going second quickest and Lewis Hamilton — fastest in FP1 — slotting into fifth, despite both having off-track moments in FP2. Max Verstappen was just 0.199s off Norris in sixth.
Oscar Piastri, who missed FP1 as Irish teenager Alex Dunne made his mandatory rookie outing, was fourth, 0.181s behind Norris. The Australian has a habit of finding another gear in qualifying, but admitted Norris had the upper hand on Friday.
“Today has been a good day,” Piastri said. “I had some catching up to do, but the car felt pretty good. Just need to tweak a bit more tomorrow and find the usual extra pace.”
Williams were another surprise package, Sainz and Alex Albon consistently towards the top of the timesheets, hinting at an outside shot at the front rows.
Antonelli crashes again but retains Wolff’s backing
Kimi Antonelli brought out an early red flag after beaching his Mercedes at Turn 7, the 19-year-old Italian suffering his second Friday crash in as many weeks.
“I pushed a bit too hard,” Antonelli admitted. “A shame, because the day was looking good. But the confidence is still high and we are moving in the right direction.”
Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff has publicly backed Antonelli, who is set to partner George Russell in 2026, despite a recent run of errors.
McLaren reprimanded after Piastri release
McLaren were handed a reprimand for releasing Piastri too early after a red flag period, though the penalty was lighter than the one-grid place sanctions handed out to George Russell and Antonelli in Bahrain earlier this season.
“I think we just misjudged, got confused with the messaging on the timing system and went a little bit early,” said Piastri.
With the top six covered by less than two tenths, Saturday’s qualifying at 3pm, live on Sky Sports F1, promises to be a Monza classic.
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