Suzuka, April 4, 2025 – by GP Thread
Free Practice 2 for the Japanese Grand Prix was anything but straightforward. Four red flags interrupted the flow of the session, but it was McLaren’s Oscar Piastri who emerged on top with a best time of 1:28.114.
Piastri narrowly edged out teammate Lando Norris by just 0.049 seconds, capping off a dominant day for McLaren. Rookie sensation Isack Hadjar, driving for Racing Bulls, delivered an eye-catching lap to secure P3, while Lewis Hamilton and Liam Lawson rounded out the top five.
The chaos began early when Alpine’s Jack Doohan lost control at Turn 1, suffering a heavy crash. Although Doohan was unharmed, the damage to the car and the length of the red flag impacted many teams’ long-run programs. Moments later, Fernando Alonso ran wide at Turn 8, causing the second red flag of the day.
As if that wasn’t enough, two trackside fires caused further interruptions, reportedly ignited by sparks from cars bottoming out on dry grass. Marshals responded swiftly, but valuable track time was lost.
Despite the interruptions, McLaren’s pace looks formidable heading into Saturday, while Red Bull still appears to be holding back – or potentially struggling to unlock Suzuka’s tricky setup.