Kimi Antonelli doubled down on Mercedes’ Austrian Grand Prix threat by topping FP2 at the Red Bull Ring, beating Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris after McLaren had looked capable of taking control.
The Italian, already fastest in FP1, lowered the benchmark to a 1m07.014s in Friday’s second session. Piastri ended 0.237s adrift, with Norris third at 0.325s after an untidy spin while pushing on the short Spielberg lap.
Max Verstappen salvaged fourth for Red Bull, 0.550s off Antonelli, before Lewis Hamilton completed the top five for Ferrari. The result leaves Mercedes with a clean Friday headline, but McLaren’s two-car presence directly behind Antonelli keeps qualifying finely balanced.
Cadillac troubles interrupt FP2
The most damaging afternoon belonged to Cadillac. Sergio Perez stopped at Turn 6 after the team had changed his ECU following his FP1 issue, triggering a Virtual Safety Car.
Valtteri Bottas then reported smoke in the cockpit before returning to the pits, where the team dealt with a small floor fire. Neither Cadillac returned to the session, leaving the new operation short of data on a weekend built around a major upgrade package.
Behind the leading five, George Russell, Isack Hadjar, Charles Leclerc, Liam Lawson and Gabriel Bortoleto completed the top 10.
FP3 begins on Saturday at 12:30 local time, before qualifying at 15:00. If Antonelli carries this pace into the final practice hour, Mercedes will have more than a Friday curiosity on its hands.
