Hungarian GP: Lando Norris Extends Lead over Piastri in 2nd Practice as Verstappen Gets Off With Warning

Lando Norris extended his lead over teammate Oscar Piastri in the second free practice session of the Hungarian Grand Prix, with the McLaren duo again locking out the top two spots.

After leading Piastri by a mere 0.019 seconds in the first practice session earlier today, Norris stretched his advantage to a more comfortable 0.291.

During qualifying simulations in the mid-session, Norris clocked a 1:15.624, the fastest lap of the weekend so far.

The pair had a near-miss towards the end of the session.

As Norris exited the pits, he locked up his front right tire while braking for the first corner, just as Piastri was entering the turn.

Fortunately for McLaren, contact was avoided, sparing the mechanics an overnight repair job.

Charles Leclerc completed the top three, 0.399 seconds behind Norris.

Aston Martin teammates Lance Stroll and Fernando Alonso followed in fourth and fifth, respectively.

Alonso's appearance marked his return to the cockpit after missing the first practice session for medical reasons.

Lewis Hamilton finished sixth, ahead of George Russell, Isaak Hadjar, Yuki Tsunoda, and Andrea Kimi Antonelli, rounding out the top ten.

Oliver Bearman, in eleventh, also finished within a second of Norris' leading time.

Max Verstappen had a disappointing session, finishing only 14th, 1.167 seconds off the pace.

In addition to his struggles with pace, the Dutchman was involved in an unusual incident.

He was seen discarding an object, seemingly a cloth, from his cockpit shortly after exiting turn three.

Verstappen avoided a penalty and only got off with a warning for the incident, after explaining to the stewards that the rag may have got stuck near his pedals.

"It was just a towel you normally wipe your face with when you come back in, so it was still in the car when I went out," he said via Sky Sports F1.

"Instead of it potentially flying in between my feet, which was the dangerous part, I drove off line and got rid of it in the safest way possible, so I think the stewards understand."

The Stewards said as per the aforementioned outlet: "The Stewards determine that the towel had the potential to have become lodged in the footwell and to interfere with the driver's ability to fully control the car and that therefore the car was released in an unsafe condition.

"The stewards consider this case to be distinguishable from a case where a hard (and therefore potentially dangerous) object is left in the cockpit and to be less severe than such a case. Hence a warning to the team is imposed."

Meanwhile, Norris, despite his pace-setting performance, also had a more conventional incident.

While starting a hot lap on soft tires, he lost control of his car at the entry of the final corner, spinning towards the barrier.

The McLaren driver managed to recover and continue the session.

The Hungarian Grand Prix weekend, the 14th round of the 2025 Formula 1 season, continues tomorrow Saturday August 2, with the final practice session at the Hungaroring, after which the qualifying race will kick off.

The 2025 Hungarian Grand Prix (officially known as the Formula 1 Lenovo Hungarian Grand Prix 2025) is a Formula One motor race that will take place on 3 August 2025 at the Hungaroring in Mogyoród, Hungary.

It will be the fourteenth round of the 2025 Formula One World Championship.