Lando Norris lit up Silverstone on Friday afternoon, topping the timesheets in Free Practice 2 for the 2025 Formula 1 British Grand Prix with a blistering 1:25.816, but it was another session of promise for Racing Bulls duo Isack Hadjar and Liam Lawson, both finishing inside the top ten in a tightly packed field.
The second practice session kicked off under clear skies, with most of the field opting for the medium compound tyre in the early stages. Only the Haas pairing of Oliver Bearman and Esteban Ocon deviated from the norm, choosing to log early laps on the harder compound.
One of the early talking points came when Bearman was noted by race control for impeding Lawson. The young Brit crossed in front of the Kiwi early in the session, interrupting one of Lawson’s initial timed runs.
Lewis Hamilton, buoyed by his FP1-topping performance, was quick to stamp his authority again in FP2, setting the early benchmark with a 1:27.280.
Lawson’s first flying effort placed him sixth, just over three tenths behind Hamilton, a strong showing as the Racing Bulls outfit once again established itself as a potential competitive force this weekend.
Oscar Piastri soon dethroned Hamilton with a 1:27.196, only for rookie sensation Isack Hadjar to steal the top spot moments later with a 1:27.062. Hadjar’s time stood briefly before Hamilton struck back with a 1:26.902 to return to the top.
George Russell slotted into third at that stage, 0.173s behind Hamilton, as the competitive midfield continued to jostle for track position. Yuki Tsunoda, meanwhile, was struggling in his first session of the weekend.
The Japanese driver, returning after Red Bull junior Arvid Lindblad drove FP1 in his place, was down in 17th and nearly 1.5 seconds off the pace. Lindblad, by comparison, had impressed with a solid FP1 showing, finishing just half a second behind Max Verstappen.
Verstappen, though, was having troubles of his own. “Have you seen my front tyres at high speed? They just don’t respond,” he radioed, before pitting for changes.
At the same time, Kimi Antonelli showed his growing comfort in the Mercedes, jumping to fifth on the charts, just over two tenths of a second behind teammate Russell.
Ferrari briefly asserted their authority mid-session, with Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton rising to the top on medium tyres. Hamilton once again reset the pace with a 1:26.592, Leclerc close behind at +0.295s. With 35 minutes remaining, the top five featured Piastri, Hadjar and Russell, suggesting another tight qualifying fight ahead.
As the session entered its final third, teams began switching to soft tyres to simulate qualifying runs. Mercedes made the most of the quicker compound, jumping to a 1–2 at the top as Antonelli clocked a 1:26.383 and Russell followed with a lap just 0.140s slower.
Lawson seized the opportunity and vaulted to fourth on the softs, only 0.241s off Antonelli’s best. His Racing Bulls teammate Hadjar went one better, jumping to third overall, precisely one tenth quicker than the Kiwi and further underlining his growing F1 confidence.
But as the track continued to evolve, the order shuffled again. Leclerc reclaimed top spot with a 1:26.202 before Piastri came within 0.084s of his lap time. Yet neither could hold off a flying Norris, who found clear air late in the session to pump in a 1:25.816, the fastest time of the day.
As the clock wound down, the top ten stood as follows: Norris led the way, followed by Leclerc (+0.222s), Hamilton (+0.301s), Piastri (+0.470s), Verstappen (+0.498s), Antonelli (+0.567s), Stroll (+0.614s), Russell (+0.707s), Hadjar (+0.708s), and Lawson rounding out the top ten, just 0.808s behind Norris.
Tsunoda continued to struggle and ended the session 15th, over 1.1 seconds adrift of Norris and more than six tenths off teammate Verstappen’s pace.
While the British crowd roared for Norris and Hamilton, it was also a session of quiet triumph for the Racing Bulls.
Header Image: Glenn Dunbar/LAT Images via Red Bull Content Pool
