Oscar Piastri topped Australian GP practice in FP2 with a stunning 1:19.729 on soft tyres in front of his home crowd. Just hours earlier, Charles Leclerc had dominated FP1 with a 1:20.267. Consequently, the two sessions painted completely different pictures of the pecking order. Ferrari controlled the morning. McLaren seized the afternoon. And Max Verstappen’s Friday ended with a damaged car and Red Bull scrambling for answers.
Furthermore, Kimi Antonelli slotted into second for Mercedes, just 0.214 behind Piastri. George Russell completed the top three at 0.320. Both Mercedes drivers had only recorded out laps in FP1. Therefore, their sudden FP2 pace confirmed they were deliberately hiding performance during the morning session.
Meanwhile, Lewis Hamilton finished fourth in FP2, 0.321 off Piastri. Leclerc dropped to fifth at 0.562 behind. However, Ferrari’s combined pace across both sessions suggests they remain genuine contenders. Additionally, Ferrari’s new rear diffuser upgrade appeared to deliver immediate gains with both drivers consistently fast throughout the day.
Verstappen’s session turned into a nightmare. He stopped in the pit lane early with a suspected technical issue. After returning to the track, he suffered a violent snap of oversteer at Turn 10 and slid through the gravel at high speed. Consequently, the Red Bull suffered substantial floor and bargeboard damage. Red Bull described it as enough damage “to keep us busy.” He completed just 13 laps in FP2.
However, Piastri’s recovery story dominated the headlines. McLaren identified a software malfunction that caused his FP1 throttle failure. “I am idling but I have got no throttle.” Engineers fixed the calibration issue within 20 minutes. Consequently, no recurrence appeared in FP2 and Piastri set the fastest time of the entire day on soft tyres late in the session.
Furthermore, multiple incidents disrupted both sessions throughout Friday.
- Arvid Lindblad stopped at pit exit during FP1, triggering a Virtual Safety Car. Alex Albon also stopped at Turn 10 with a hydraulic failure.
- Russell and Lindblad collided at pit exit during FP2. Stewards placed the incident under investigation.
- Franco Colapinto slowed dramatically on the pit straight with an apparent power unit issue. Hamilton narrowly avoided him. “There was a car going crazy slow on the pit straight.”
- Lando Norris suffered gearbox problems in FP1, completing just 7 laps. McLaren performed a precautionary change before FP2. He recovered to seventh in the afternoon session.
- Sergio Perez spent over 50 minutes in the Cadillac garage during FP2. He emerged for just 2 laps before stopping at Turn 11. No competitive time was set. Cadillac’s debut continues to expose the integration challenges that plagued their entire pre-season.
Aston Martin’s disaster deepened throughout the day. Alonso missed FP1 entirely due to a power unit communication failure. He managed just 17 laps in FP2, finishing nearly 5 seconds behind Piastri. Additionally, Alonso confirmed the team gained almost nothing from Friday. “Not much learning to be honest. Unfortunately the Honda issue in FP1 and some Honda issues in FP2 limited our number of laps today.”
Moreover, the team revealed they are down to their last working batteries with no spares available. Vibrations continue transmitting through the steering column into drivers’ hands. Consequently, the risk of permanent nerve damage remains real beyond 25 consecutive laps. The Aston Martin vibration crisis has escalated from a testing concern into a genuine race weekend emergency. Stroll completed 13 laps in FP2, finishing over 6 seconds off the pace. Race participation itself remains in genuine doubt.
Furthermore, conditions improved throughout Friday. Dry and mild weather prevailed with no rain. Air temperatures rose from 20 degrees in FP1 to 23 degrees in FP2. Track temperatures climbed accordingly, improving grip and enabling faster lap times in the afternoon session.
Notably, lap times across both sessions ran approximately 3 seconds slower than 2025 equivalents. The new 2026 regulations, lighter cars and energy management demands fundamentally changed the pace profile at Albert Park. Additionally, teams reported that fewer heavy braking zones forced more lift-and-coast driving and complex energy harvesting strategies.
The Australian GP practice day ended with more questions than answers. Piastri leads the timesheets. Mercedes emerged from hiding. Ferrari showed consistent strength across both sessions. However, Verstappen faces a repair job, Cadillac barely ran and Aston Martin teeters on the edge of participation.
Qualifying starts tomorrow at 1:30 GMT. The Australian GP practice data suggests Saturday could be the most unpredictable qualifying session in years. Nobody truly knows the real pecking order. That uncertainty makes everything that follows genuinely unmissable.
