Q2 – Antonelli returns to the top
Amid confirmation that Gasly would be investigated after the session for a foul at Turn 15, the remaining 16 drivers braced themselves for another 15 minutes of action in Q2. Hajjar – the fastest driver in the first quarter – and Verstappen were first on track before they were soon joined by the rest of the field, all on soft tyres.
“This engine is not responding as usual,” Verstappen said over the radio. When first on the board, Hajjar remained 0.125 seconds ahead of his teammate, but they were both soon caught up in the Ferraris of Hamilton and Leclerc, Hamilton down 1 minute 28 seconds at the top with an effort of 1 meter 28.864 seconds.
Russell then took second place, a lap down by just 0.056 seconds after setting the fastest mid-sector of all. Meanwhile, Antonelli, in the other Mercedes, lost time due to track restrictions and had plenty to do, but the Italian managed to move up to third in 1m 29.043s.
On the other hand, things weren’t going well for McLaren, with Norris barely getting safely into ninth position and Piastri into the danger zone in 11th position. The Australian was joined in the bottom six by Gasly, Bearman, Sainz, Albon and Hulkenberg, the latter also being sent off for exceeding track limits.
As Russell jumped out of his car in the garage, asking for a space, the clock was ticking down the final minutes of the second quarter. Meanwhile, Verstappen’s next attempt propelled the Dutchman into sixth place, leaving him free to say on the radio: “What a disaster… Unbelievable.”
Elsewhere, Piastri managed to climb to seventh place – but will that be enough to take him into Q3? Norris also remained in ninth place, putting the Briton at risk as those behind him tried to improve their results.
While Antonelli ran fastest with 1m 28.493sec, all eyes were on the names in the danger zone to see if anyone could make progress – but ultimately that was not the case: Norris and Lawson, in ninth and 10th, were able to breathe a sigh of relief as Bortoleto, Gasly, Hulkenberg, Bearman, Sainz and Albon retired.
Eliminated: Bortoleto, Gasly, Hulkenberg, Birman, Sainz, Albon.