McLaren delivered a clear statement of intent in Free Practice 2 at the 2025 Bahrain Grand Prix, locking out the top two positions in the most representative session of the weekend so far. Oscar Piastri topped the timesheets with a lap of 1:30.505, just over a tenth clear of teammate Lando Norris, underlining the team’s growing status as the front-runners in the early stages of the 2025 season.
What To Know
- Oscar Piastri led a McLaren 1-2, topping FP2 with a 1:30.505 ahead of teammate Lando Norris under the Bahrain floodlights.
- Ferrari’s upgrades fell short, with Leclerc fourth and Hamilton eighth, over a second off the pace despite early promise.
- Verstappen struggled with brake issues, finishing seventh, while rookie Antonelli impressed in fifth after missing most of FP1.
With the sun setting and track temperatures falling, FP2 offered a realistic preview of qualifying and race conditions, in stark contrast to the blistering heat of FP1. All 20 full-time drivers were back in their cars following the rookie-heavy opening session, and the competitive intensity ramped up quickly. After early running on a mix of tyre compounds, it was once soft-tyre qualifying simulations began that the McLarens surged to the front—comfortably ahead of the rest.
Mercedes’ George Russell slotted into third, but his best effort was still over half a second down on Piastri, highlighting just how far McLaren’s raw pace extended. Ferrari had shown early promise under the lights, but their sizeable upgrade package—including a new floor, diffuser, and rear wing—appeared to still fall short of the papaya team’s form. Charles Leclerc managed fourth, 0.540s behind the leader, while Lewis Hamilton could only muster eighth after a scrappy lap left him over a second adrift.
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Kimi Antonelli bounced back from his curtailed FP1 session, placing an impressive fifth in the Mercedes. The Italian rookie looked more comfortable as the session progressed, finally getting valuable mileage under his belt. Right behind him was Racing Bulls’ Isack Hadjar, who continued to impress by going sixth—despite running on the medium compound while most others set their best times on the softs.
Meanwhile, Max Verstappen’s session was defined by frustration. The reigning world champion never looked settled in the RB21, reporting a “very bad ride” and ongoing brake issues throughout. A lock-up at Turn 10 and complaints about the car “jumping a lot” highlighted a difficult outing, and he ultimately ended up seventh, 0.825s off the pace. To make matters worse for Red Bull, Yuki Tsunoda could only manage 18th after receiving a reprimand for a pit-lane overtake on Alex Albon in FP1.
There was also drama at Aston Martin, where Fernando Alonso suffered a bizarre steering issue just a few laps in. His steering wheel came loose heading into the final corner, forcing him to limp back to the pits. The team quickly addressed the column fault and got him back out, but the Spaniard was left with fewer than 20 laps of running and ended up in 16th.
Rounding out the top ten were Haas rookie Ollie Bearman in ninth and Carlos Sainz in tenth for Williams, as both continued long-run data gathering into the cooler evening. Albon followed in 11th, just ahead of Lawson and Kick Sauber’s Gabriel Bortoleto, who found time late on his soft-tyre run.
Further down the order, Jack Doohan was 14th for Alpine, Alonso 16th, and Pierre Gasly a disappointing 17th. Tsunoda’s challenging session left him 18th, ahead of Lance Stroll in the second Aston Martin and Nico Hulkenberg’s Sauber, who brought up the rear.
As Friday night wrapped up in Bahrain, the McLaren garage could reflect on a dominant showing under the lights—one that firmly positioned them as the team to beat heading into Saturday. With qualifying looming, rivals like Ferrari and Red Bull had work to do overnight if they wanted to challenge the orange cars at the front in this still-young but already fierce 2025 championship.
2025 Bahrain GP FP2 Results
2025 Bahrain Grand Prix FP2, 11 April 2025
| Pos | No | Driver | Car | Time | Gap | Laps |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 81 | Oscar Piastri | McLaren Mercedes | 1:30.505 | 29 | |
| 2 | 4 | Lando Norris | McLaren Mercedes | 1:30.659 | +0.154s | 28 |
| 3 | 63 | George Russell | Mercedes | 1:31.032 | +0.527s | 25 |
| 4 | 16 | Charles Leclerc | Ferrari | 1:31.045 | +0.540s | 27 |
| 5 | 12 | Kimi Antonelli | Mercedes | 1:31.227 | +0.722s | 27 |
| 6 | 6 | Isack Hadjar | Racing Bulls Honda RBPT | 1:31.238 | +0.733s | 24 |
| 7 | 1 | Max Verstappen | Red Bull Racing Honda RBPT | 1:31.330 | +0.825s | 27 |
| 8 | 44 | Lewis Hamilton | Ferrari | 1:31.576 | +1.071s | 23 |
| 9 | 87 | Oliver Bearman | Haas Ferrari | 1:31.584 | +1.079s | 27 |
| 10 | 55 | Carlos Sainz | Williams Mercedes | 1:31.623 | +1.118s | 28 |
| 11 | 23 | Alexander Albon | Williams Mercedes | 1:31.696 | +1.191s | 29 |
| 12 | 30 | Liam Lawson | Racing Bulls Honda RBPT | 1:31.706 | +1.201s | 27 |
| 13 | 5 | Gabriel Bortoleto | Kick Sauber Ferrari | 1:31.772 | +1.267s | 25 |
| 14 | 7 | Jack Doohan | Alpine Renault | 1:31.788 | +1.283s | 27 |
| 15 | 14 | Fernando Alonso | Aston Martin Aramco Mercedes | 1:31.825 | +1.320s | 19 |
| 16 | 31 | Esteban Ocon | Haas Ferrari | 1:31.870 | +1.365s | 27 |
| 17 | 10 | Pierre Gasly | Alpine Renault | 1:31.947 | +1.442s | 27 |
| 18 | 22 | Yuki Tsunoda | Red Bull Racing Honda RBPT | 1:32.024 | +1.519s | 25 |
| 19 | 18 | Lance Stroll | Aston Martin Aramco Mercedes | 1:32.382 | +1.877s | 27 |
| 20 | 27 | Nico Hulkenberg | Kick Sauber Ferrari | 1:32.496 | +1.991s | 24 |
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