Japanese Grand Prix: Oscar Piastri Tops Practice Two Amid Multiple Red Flags

Oscar Piastri finished fastest in a very eventful second practice session at the Japanese Grand Prix. The session was interrupted four times by red flags, including a major crash for Jack Doohan.

Piastri was just a fraction ahead of his McLaren teammate Lando Norris, who is currently leading the Drivers` Championship. McLaren appeared strong early in the weekend. However, the numerous stoppages meant that drivers only had about 20 minutes of actual track time out of the scheduled hour.

Jack Doohan`s crash was a significant incident. He lost control of his Alpine car at the fast first corner and hit the barriers hard. The impact was severe enough to remove two wheels from his car. This happened after Alpine chose to run their reserve driver Ryo Hirakawa in the first practice session instead of Doohan.

It seemed initially that Doohan`s car might have hit the ground too hard (bottomed out). But replays showed that the DRS (Drag Reduction System) on his car was still open. Drivers are expected to close the DRS before braking for Turn 1.

Doohan, aged 22, was reported by Alpine to be okay after a check-up at the circuit`s medical center. He was helped out of his damaged car. The session was paused for around 20 minutes while repairs were made to the barriers.

Shortly after the session restarted, Fernando Alonso, a two-time world champion, also made a mistake. He spun his Aston Martin at Turn 8 and got stuck in the gravel, highlighting the challenging windy conditions.

As teams rushed to complete qualifying simulations, the session was red-flagged again. This time, it was due to fire on the grass beside the track, started by sparks from the cars` undercarriages.

Despite the chaos, Piastri managed to outperform Norris, suggesting a close competition between the McLaren drivers for the rest of the weekend. Another incident with grass catching fire caused a fourth red flag and ended the practice early.

Similar to the first practice where Norris was fastest, McLaren seemed to have a pace advantage over other teams in single-lap speed.

Isack Hadjar achieved an impressive third place for Racing Bulls, indicating good performance from the team. Liam Lawson, returning to the team after being replaced at Red Bull, finished fifth.

Max Verstappen, the current champion, was only eighth fastest. Yuki Tsunoda, who had a good first practice, was further down in 18th, as both Red Bull drivers struggled to get a clean lap in the disrupted session.

Lewis Hamilton in a Ferrari was fourth, placing between the two Racing Bulls. His teammate Charles Leclerc was seventh, as Ferrari tries to resolve setup problems that have affected their season start.

George Russell from Mercedes, who was second in the first practice and looked like a potential challenger to McLaren, finished sixth.

Japanese GP Practice Two Results