Charles Leclair was the fastest on Friday.
The second part of the free races
Sunny. Dry. Air +24...23C, highway +42...39C
In the second practice session, the riders worked out the traditional tire performance assessment program, starting the session with tougher compounds, but very soon switching to Soft ones. The forecast for Saturday promises hotter weather, and on Sunday the race may turn out to be rainy – the settings will certainly have to be adjusted, but information about tires at the beginning of the season is very important for the teams.
Haas F1 did not have time to restore Berman's car after the morning accident, the rest of the drivers went to the track. Hulkenberg, Gasly and Tsunoda flew into the gravel without serious consequences. Verstappen was hampered by severe understeer in the first and third corners, starting the lap on Soft, he aborted the attempt and returned to the pits, where the mechanics changed the settings.
The Haas F1 mechanics did their best, but Berman did not go to the track in the second practice session – an unsuccessful start to the weekend for the British driver.
Charles Leclair led the protocol, completing a lap in 1:16.439 – faster than the schedule of all last year's training sessions in Melbourne.
Results of the second session
Pilot
The Time Team
Difference
Circles
1. Sh.Leclair
Ferrari
1:16.439
-
29
2. O.Piastri
McLaren
1:16.563
+0.124
27
3. L.Norris
McLaren
1:16.580
+0.141
28
4 . Yu.Tsunoda
Racing Bulls
1:16.784
+0.345
26
5 . L. Hamilton
Ferrari
1:16.859
+0.420
29
6 . A.Hajjar
Racing Bulls
1:17.019
+0.580
28
7 . M.Verstappen
Red Bull
1:17.063
+0.624
19
8 . N.Hulkenberg
Sauber
1:17.161
+0.722
22
9 . L.Stroll
Aston Martin
1:17.279
+0.840
26
10. D.Russell
Mercedes
1:17.282
+0.843
28
11. K.Sainz
Williams
1:17.302
+0.863
27
12. A.Elbon
Williams
1:17.302
+0.863
26
13. F. Alonso
Aston Martin
1:17.330
+0.891
25
14. D. Duane
Alpine
1:17.394
+0.955
28
15. P.Gasli
Alpine
1:17.493
+1.054
28
16. K.Antonelli
Mercedes
1:17.634
+1.195
29
17. L. Lawson
Red Bull
1:17.640
+1.201
28
18. The city of Bortoleto
Sauber
1:17.847
+1.408
26
19. E.Okon
Haas
1:18.034
+1.595
29
20. O. Berman
Haas
Without time
The first part of the free races
Sunny. Dry. Air +24...25C, highway +40...44C
On March 14, at 04:30 Moscow time, in faraway Australia, where it was already past noon, the Formula 1 2025 season started, the 76th in history – it was called the most interesting in recent years even before the start. Let's see!
Only 96 days have passed since the end of last season, and the cars have hardly changed during that time, but most of the teams have changed drivers, and Lewis Hamilton, who joined Ferrari, opened the transition season.
Nico Hulkenberg was the first to hit the track in a Sauber, and a couple of minutes later Hamilton and the others joined him, all choosing Medium tires for their first attempt. Only Alex Albon remained in the pits – Williams had a slight hitch, but he soon left. Max Verstappen drove the fastest first lap in 1:19.771, then the results started to improve.
Lawson hit the wall with his wheel in turn nine, and his teammate Verstappen hit the gravel in turn seven, with no apparent consequences.
19 minutes after the start, the session was stopped with red flags – it was necessary to remove the gravel that appeared on the track after Jack Duane's departure. A special car cleared the surface, and the racers continued. Russell, Verstappen and Antonelli drove on Soft.
The second time, red flags appeared after the accident of another novice – Berman's car was torn off in a bunch of 9-10 turns and carried out into the gravel – he seemed to be in control of the situation, but when returning to the track, the car turned around and was thrown into the wall at high speed.
The 19-year–old Briton was not injured, but left the track in a medical car - the overload sensor showed dangerous values, and he was sent to a medical center for examination.
The riders returned to the pits – it was necessary to restore the barrier and clear the asphalt, but the pause was short-lived.
At the last minute, Russell found himself in the safety zone of the fourth turn after a U-turn, but he managed to avoid contact with the wall.
As expected, the results were solid, with 13 riders per second behind the leader. Lando Norris led the record, completing his best lap in 1:17.252 – already faster than last Friday in Melbourne.
Results of the first session
Pilot
The Time Team
Difference
Circles
1. L.Norris
McLaren
1:17.252
-
21
2. K.Sainz
Williams
1:17.401
+0.149
25
3. S.Leclair
Ferrari
1:17.461
+0.209
21
4 . O. Piastri
McLaren
1:17.670
+0.418
20
5 . M.Verstappen
Red Bull
1:17.696
+0.444
21
6 . A.Elbon
Williams
1:17.713
+0.461
18
7 . d.Russell
Mercedes
1:17.716
+0.464
26
8 . F.Alonso
Aston Martin
1:17.736
+0.484
23
9 . A.Hajjar
Racing Bulls
1:17.847
+0.595
25
10. L.Stroll
Aston Martin
1:18.057
+0.805
20
11. Yu.Tsunoda
Racing Bulls
1:18.061
+0.809
23
12. L. Hamilton
Ferrari
1:18.071
+0.819
20
13. D. Duane
Alpine
1:18.232
+0.980
20
14. K.Antonelli
Mercedes
1:18.390
+1.138
25
15. The city of Bortoleto
Sauber
1:18.438
+1.186
22
16. L. Lawson
Red Bull
1:18.455
+1.203
22
17. P.Gasli
Alpine
1:18.505
+1.253
23
18. N. Hulkenberg
Sauber
1:18.586
+1.334
18
19. E.Okon
Haas
1:19.139
+1.887
16
20. O. Berman
Haas
1:19.312
+2.060
12
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