Jeddah, Saudi Arabia – Lando Norris drew a line in the sand after his trying time in Bahrain last weekend and bossed a second practice at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix on Friday marred by a crash for Red Bull’s Yuki Tsunoda.
In contrast, Norris, winner of the season-opener in Melbourne, was out of sorts in qualifying in Bahrain and in the race itself, doing well in the circumstances to make the podium.
Reflecting on his practice performance Norris said: “A good start to the weekend, getting comfy in the car and building confidence.”
Piastri rated it “a solid Friday”.
He added: “The competition doesn’t seem far away, so we need to iron out a couple of things to put us in the best place for qualifying.”
Max Verstappen and Red Bull had a rough time in Bahrain, the four-time world champion only finishing sixth, sparking crisis talks in the team on how to improve their car.
The Dutchman, a winner in Jeddah last year and 2022, posted the third quickest time, almost three tenths of a second behind.
“For tomorrow (qualifying) it is difficult to say how competitive we will be,” said Verstappen.
“McLarens look really competitive. There is still a bit of work to do and things to understand, so we’ll see.”
Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc and Williams’ Carlos Sainz completed the top five.
The session began with one driver missing.
Gabriel Bortoleto’s Sauber developed a fuel leak before the session began forcing the Brazilian out.
That was not helpful for the rookie, as it robbed him of a crucial run out in evening race conditions under the floodlights.
In the early stages, with the track as busy as downtown rush hour in Jeddah, Lance Stroll came to an unscripted stop at turn one, the Canadian locking up his Aston Martin prompting a brief yellow flag.
Norris, eager to find his McLaren’s ‘sweet spot’ after admitting to struggling to unlock the full potential of his 2025 car, held early sway, but only by a mere one thousandth of a second from his teammate and main championship rival Piastri.
Pierre Gasly, the star of opening practice in the bright afternoon sunshine, complained about brake issues on his Alpine, which forced the Frenchman to pit.
Tsunoda crash
Midway through the one hour of action, Verstappen upped the tempo, the Dutchman going almost four tenths clear of Sainz, who this time last year was struggling with appendicitis which was to rule him out of the 2024 race.
Then, in a sign of the fierce battle Red Bull face against the generally faster McLarens, Piastri, riding the kerbs, bettered Verstappen’s time, only for Norris to go even quicker
A series of drivers brushed the walls that line the fast, purpose-built street circuit.
One was Tsunoda, who crashed into the barrier at the final corner to bring out the red flag in the closing 10 minutes, leaving the Red Bull mechanics with work to do to repair his heavily dented car.
That ruined what had been a good day for the Japanese driver in his third race since succeeding Liam Lawson as Verstappen’s teammate.
“I was just turning too much, no control, it’s a shame. My confidence level was pretty good,” he added later after posting the sixth fastest time.
Lewis Hamilton faced the stewards for impeding Alex Albon’s Williams on a fast lap but no action was taken against the Ferrari driver.
Final practice is on Saturday afternoon ahead of night-time qualifying for this fifth round of the 24-race season.
