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MUST-SEE: Ferrari's Sainz and Leclerc both hit the wall in second Saudi Arabian Grand Prix practice
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Ferrari may have topped FP2 through Charles Leclerc's benchmark, but both he and team mate Carlos Sainz bowed out of the session early as they fell foul of the tight confines of the Jeddah Corniche Circuit.
Bahrain Grand Prix winner Leclerc set the fastest time of 1m 30.074s in FP2, going just over a tenth clear of Max Verstappen. However, he was forced to limp his F1-75 back to the pits with 20 minutes remaining having hit the looming walls into Turn 4.
Sainz finished third quickest but hit the Turn 13 barriers, the impact hard enough to see him bow out of second practice early as well.
VISOR CAM: Ride onboard with Charles Leclerc around the Jeddah Corniche Circuit
After finishing top in FP2, Leclerc said: "It was an unfortunate end to an otherwise good day. In FP2 it was a small mistake, but not one that makes me lose confidence. I expected the front to slide around more and I clipped the inside wall at turn 4.
"Focusing on tomorrow, I think the pace is there. It’s a bit of a shame we couldn’t get the high fuel laps done, but we should be in the mix for tomorrow."
Sainz added: "As expected these cars are behaving differently here in Jeddah compared to Bahrain and we keep learning more about how to set up the car for different conditions and corners.
"Porpoising was a bit of an issue at a certain point but I’m not concerned. As last year, understanding which is the best tyre for the race is important for the strategy.
"Unfortunately, we didn’t do the long run at the end of FP2 after I brushed the wall and we had to stay in the garage. We’ll see what tomorrow brings."
Watch Ferrari's brushes with the barriers in the video player above.
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