Charles Leclerc, aiming to have a strong weekend at his home event, finished Friday at the Monaco Grand Prix on top by setting the fastest time during the second practice. The FP1 session was briefly interrupted and marked by red flags to clear debris caused by Zhou Guanyu brushing the barriers.

Following a briefly interrupted FP1 session, marked by red flags to clear debris caused by Zhou Guanyu brushing the barriers, the drivers eagerly took to the track for FP2. Lewis Hamilton led the pack out from the pit lane.

Leclerc quickly established himself at the top of the timesheets after the initial laps, posting a time of 1m 11.573s on the medium compound tires. As many drivers switched to the soft tyre compound, Leclerc managed to improve his time, surpassing Verstappen’s by half a second.

Mercedes’ George Russell reported experiencing vibrations through his steering wheel early on. Meanwhile, Max Verstappen also encountered difficulties and complained of headaches caused by the car’s erratic movements, likening it to “jumping like a kangaroo” in the Red Bull.

As the session progressed, drivers inevitably pushed the limits, with Yuki Tsunoda, Oscar Piastri, and Max Verstappen among those who brushed against the walls, fortunately avoiding any significant consequences. Meanwhile, Hamilton managed to narrow the gap to Leclerc’s fastest time to within two-tenths.

Leclerc’s lap of 1m 11.278s remained unmatched for the duration of FP2, with Hamilton securing slotting into second place ahead of Fernando Alonso in third for Aston Martin. Verstappen settled for fourth place, after a minor on-track altercation with Yuki Tsunoda towards the end.

Lando Norris finished P5, narrowly edging out Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz in P6. Lance Stroll secured P7 for Aston Martin, followed by Red Bull’s Sergio Perez in P8, who had contend with ride height issues in his RB20.

Alex Albon and George Russell completed the top 10 for Williams and Mercedes, respectively. Yuki Tsunoda claimed 11th place in his RB, with Piastri, who opted not to run the soft tire on his McLaren during the session, finishing in 12th.

Kevin Magnussen finished 13th in the Haas, with Esteban Ocon in 14th after brushing the barriers in his Alpine. Nico Hulkenberg took 15th place for Haas, and Daniel Ricciardo finished 16th in the RB.

Pierre Gasly had limited running in FP1 due to a technical issue. As a result, he could only secure P17 for Alpine, ahead of Williams’ Logan Sargeant in P18. Sargeant was one of the first drivers to lightly clip the barriers during the session.

The Kick Sauber duo, Valtteri Bottas and Zhou Guanyu, occupied the bottom spots in P19 and P20, respectively. Neither driver opted for the soft tire, mirroring the strategy of the RB pair.

As Friday’s track action concludes, teams and drivers will analyze their data before returning for the third and final practice on Saturday at 12:30 local time, ahead of qualifying later in the day.

2024 Monaco Grand Prix: First Practice 2

1 Charles LECLERC Ferrari 1:11.278
2 Lewis HAMILTON Mercedes +0.188
3 Fernando ALONSO Aston Martin +0.475
4 Max VERSTAPPEN Red Bull +0.535
5 Lando NORRIS McLaren +0.675
6 Carlos SAINZ Ferrari +0.684
7 Lance STROLL Aston Martin +0.784
8 Sergio PEREZ Red Bull +0.821
9 Alexander ALBON Williams +0.979
10 George RUSSELL Mercedes +0.982
11 Yuki TSUNODA RB +1.071 [medium tyres]
12 Oscar PIASTRI McLaren +1.088 [medium tyres]
13 Kevin MAGNUSSEN Haas +1.195
14 Esteban OCON Alpine +1.276
15 Nico HULKENBERG Haas +1.291
16 Daniel RICCIARDO RB +1.299 [medium tyres]
17 Pierre GASLY Alpine +1.472
18 Logan SARGEANT Williams +1.512
19 Valtteri BOTTAS Kick Sauber +1.779 [medium tyres]
20 ZHOU Guanyu Kick Sauber +2.495 [medium tyres]