Saudi Arabian GP second practice results and full report: how Ferrari performed at Jeddah. 2024 F1 Saudi Arabian GP second practice results and full report.

The second free practice session in Saudi Arabia concludes with Max Verstappen leading the pack, but let’s review what happened in our FP2 summary. Many interesting insights emerged from the second free practice session. The teams took advantage of the opportunity to have weather and track conditions similar to those in qualifying and the race to conduct simulations of flying laps and long runs. Let’s see everything that happened through our Saudi Arabia GP FP2 summary.

The session started ten minutes late due to the now classic enemies of F1: drain covers. The Federation had to check a drain grid in the pit lane, requiring extra time.

Almost all drivers immediately hit the track on medium tires to continue gaining confidence with the track and find a rhythm. Only the two VCARB cars opted for soft tires, while Norris, Albon, Hulkenberg, and Bottas started with the hard compound.

There was a big scare for Logan Sargeant, who found Lewis Hamilton in his trajectory during his flying lap, leading to an investigation for impeding. The Mercedes did not seem fantastic, with Russell complaining about instability at high speeds.

The first run with yellow tires concluded with Verstappen leading everyone, just 17 thousandths ahead of Alonso. Behind them were Sainz, Perez, Russell, Leclerc, and an excellent Norris on hard tires. Ferrari retained the rear wing from Bahrain, undoubtedly not an ideal configuration for this track.

Qualifying simulation, Alonso on fire
Half an hour before the end of the session, drivers returned to the track with red tires to simulate qualifying. The fastest of all was Fernando Alonso, who also found an excellent slipstream on his lap. The Spaniard was two-tenths ahead of George Russell and three ahead of Max Verstappen.

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The solid pace of the Aston Martin, perhaps already on with a maximum engine mapping, was confirmed by Stroll’s sixth place, half a second behind his teammate. The Canadian was preceded by Charles Leclerc and Sergio  Perez in fourth and fifth positions, respectively.

Seventh was Carlos Sainz, who, however, struggled with the red tires. The Spaniard was hindered by traffic on a couple of occasions, preventing him from immediately completing a clean lap.

FP2 Summary: Race pace in Saudi Arabia
Twenty minutes before the end, attention shifted to race pace simulations. The first to provide feedback were Perez and Alonso, both on medium tires, with the Mexican being about three-tenths faster per lap.

Differentiated work at Ferrari. Leclerc simulated the stint on soft tires, while Sainz hit the track with medium tires. The Monegasque tried a gentle introduction to the tire before gradually lowering the lap times. A great run for Leclerc with this compound, once again highlighting how Ferrari has solved all tire management problems.

All cars showed little tire degradation. However, Verstappen, Perez, and Red Bull still seem to have a slight advantage. The Dutchman’s average lap time is still the best, and the progression of times has been truly impressive. Verstappen closed with a 33.7, sending a clear signal to everyone.

The hierarchies seem to be quite clear. As seen in Bahrain, Red Bull appears to be ahead, with Ferrari close behind in pursuit. We’ll see if tomorrow the Maranello team decides to unload the rear wing to recover some straight-line speed.