Verstappen stays on top ahead of Leclerc in F1 Turkish GP second practice

Max Verstappen went fastest in second practice for Formula 1’s Turkish Grand Prix to remain on top of the timesheets.

The Red Bull driver rounded out Friday practice on F1’s first visit to Turkey in nine years by setting the benchmark pace with a 1m28.330s, some 0.401s clear of Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc.

Drivers continued to struggle on Istanbul Park’s new low-grip surface in the afternoon, with many taking a number of laps to get their tyres up to temperature and set their best times during the Soft-rubber qualifying simulation runs.

While the pace ultimately dropped compared to the opening 90-minute session, Verstappen’s headline-grabbing time was still three seconds shy than the 2011 pole lap on an abnormal day at Istanbul. 

Valtteri Bottas was half a second adrift in third place as the lead Mercedes driver, with teammate Lewis Hamilton only fourth-fastest and nearly a second down on a weekend he can seal a record-equalling seventh world title.

After an encouraging morning, early FP2 pacesetter Alex Albon finished the day with the fifth-quickest time, over a full second down on his Red Bull teammate.

Next up came the AlphaTauri duo of Daniil Kvyat and Pierre Gasly in sixth and seventh, with Sebastian Vettel, Lance Stroll and birthday boy Lando Norris completing the top-10 order for Ferrari, Racing Point and McLaren.

Renault were the surprise absentee from the top-10 in second practice as Esteban Ocon only managed the 12th-quickest time and Daniel Ricciardo finished a lowly 15th despite enjoying an issue-free session.

Some synchronised spinning occurred at Williams, with George Russell (17th fastest) facing the wrong way at Turn 1 and Nicholas Latifi doing the same at Turn 7 on his way to setting the slowest time of all, five seconds off the pace. 

FULL SECOND PRACTICE RESULTS FOR THE 2020 F1 TURKISH GRAND PRIX