The second practice session in Mexico was red flagged twice on Friday after Charles Leclerc suffered a heavy crash in his Ferrari.
Leclerc lost control on entry into the high-speed Turn 7 and ended up sliding backwards into the barriers.
His Ferrari was left badly damaged at the rear-end and the session was stopped to recover the car and fix the barriers.
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Leclerc walked away unharmed and after a lengthy day, cars returned to track.
There was a second red flag in the closing minutes when Zhou Guanyu suffered a hydraulic failure in his Alfa Romeo, forcing an early end to the session.
Mercedes’ George Russell ended with the fastest time, a 1.19.970, followed by Yuki Tsunoda 0.828 seconds back, and Esteban Ocon 1.207 seconds slower.
Russell’s Mercedes teammate Lewis Hamilton was 1.5 seconds slower, followed by the Red Bulls of Sergio Perez and Max Verstappen.
Asked about his expectations for the race, Russell said: “I’d like to think it’s definitely podium possible, at least. It’s probably one of, if not our best Friday of the year.”
Both McLaren’s finished well down the order with Lando Norris and Daniel Ricciardo in P14 and P15 respectively.
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AS IT HAPPENED
After a morning filled with political debate following the announcement by the FIA of Red Bull’s punishment for last year’s cost-cap breach and Ferrari’s dominance of opening practice, there was an air of welcome calm as the second session began.
In warm but overcast conditions with rain threatening, the 90 minutes were cast to be used as an extensive Pirelli tyre test, concentrating on a range of soft compounds for consideration next year.
This gave the action an air of pre-season testing rather than race preparation, although those drivers who took no part in the earlier session, having given their cars to rookie reserve drivers, were permitted to use half of the session for set-up work this year’s tyres.
The 2023 tyres were all unmarked and unpredictable.
Russell and Ocon were swiftly involved in the action and Perez provided his adoring fans with a reason to cheer on every passing lap, but there was little urgency before Sainz went top for Ferrari.
He was followed by Russell, on mediums, before Verstappen with a set of tester softs and then Perez set the pace until Russell, in 1:19.970, went 1.6 seconds clear after 20 minutes on fresh soft tyres.
Leclerc then crashed, after 33 minutes, spinning backwards into the barriers at turn seven and badly damaging the rear of his Ferrari to prompt a red flag stoppage that lasted 20 minutes.
He was unhurt, but it was a setback to him and the Ferrari team at a venue where they have not won since Alain Prost triumphed in 1990.
As the sky darkened, the track conditions deteriorated. The falling temperatures offered less grip as the cars slithered around ensuring Russell’s lap remained the fastest.
The third and final practice session takes place at 4am Sunday (AEDT), followed by qualifying at 7am.
— With AFP
