Hungarian GP: Lewis Hamilton upstages Charles Leclerc in Practice Two as Ferrari dominates Friday at the Hungaroring | F1 News
Lewis Hamilton joined team-mate Charles Leclerc in the fastest time in second practice as Ferrari dominated the first day of racing at the Hungarian Grand Prix.
After Leclerc effectively edged out Red Bull’s Max Verstappen and Hamilton in Friday’s opening session, the seven-time world champion made a big improvement later in the day to turn a second-half deficit into a 0.158s advantage over his team-mate.
Close behind Ferrari’s rival in the second half was world champion Lando Norris, who was just behind Hamilton in his upgraded McLaren.
While Ferrari’s pace at the Hungaroring – a circuit many thought would suit their car – did not come as a surprise, the Italian team will be buoyed by the unexpected struggle of championship leader Kimi Antonelli and his Mercedes team.
After sitting out the first session as Mercedes completed one of their mandatory rookie driving sessions, Antonelli struggled badly on his return to action as he repeatedly ran into rear-end lock problems.
The 19-year-old Italian, who leads Hamilton by 45 points in the standings, was 13th and nearly two seconds adrift, while team-mate George Russell nearly came back for second in the lead in fifth despite running on new soft tyres.
Verstappen was almost seven from fourth, with his Red Bull team-mate Isack Hadjar following Russell in sixth.
McLaren’s Oscar Piastri, who also finished first, was a disappointing eighth as he was beaten by Racing Bulls’ Liam Lawson, but his deficit to team-mate Norris could be explained by the Australian not having the same package to improve his car.
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Aston Martin driver Lance Stroll avoids a barrier after failing to leave him stranded, prompting a red flag in P1 at the Hungarian Grand Prix.
Although Mercedes, along with McLaren and Red Bull, have time to gain on Ferrari before the final practice at 11.30 am on Saturday, the Italian team found themselves as clear favorites for the most important qualifying session of the season, which will follow at 3 pm, live. Sky Sports F1.
The session was interrupted by a red flag around 10 minutes in when Franco Colapinto crashed his Alpine heavily entering the final corner.
Aston Martin’s Lance Stroll was nowhere to be seen after his first class suspension, as the team’s difficult season continued as the launch of a 16-part development package was overshadowed by the incident.
Fernando Alonso was not able to bring any significant improvement to their single works car in the second practice, as he finished between the two cars of the new 2026 Cadillac in 19th, almost three seconds off the pace.
Sky Sports F1 Hungarian GP schedule
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The first stage of the 2021 Hungarian Grand Prix saw many drivers collide
Saturday July 25
9am: F3 Sprint
11.15am: Hungarian GP Practice Three (session starts at 11.30am)
1.10pm: F2 Sprint*
2.15pm: Hungarian GP qualifying build-up*
3pm: HUNGARIAN GP QUALIFYING*
5pm: Ted’s Worthy Note*
Sunday July 26
7.35am: F3 Feature Race
9.05am: Porsche Supercup
10.20am: F2 Feature Race
12.30pm: Hungarian GP build-up: Sunday’s Grand Prix*
2pm: HUNGARIAN GRAND PRIX*
4pm: Hungarian GP reaction: Checkered Flag*
5pm: Ted’s Note*
*Also on Sky Sports Main Event
Formula 1 heads to Budapest for the Hungarian Grand Prix with every session live on Sky Sports F1 from this Friday. Stream Sky Sports NOW – no contract, cancel anytime
