FP2: Hamilton keeps Mercedes on top in second Las Vegas GP practice

Lewis Hamilton completed a Thursday practice clean sweep by setting the pace in FP2 for the Las Vegas Grand Prix, edging out McLaren rival Lando Norris and Mercedes team mate George Russell – with championship leader Max Verstappen only 17th after a low-key showing.

Following on from his and the Silver Arrows’ encouraging first session, Hamilton produced a benchmark 1m 33.825s on soft tyres during the late-night outing, putting him a few thousandths clear of Norris and a couple of tenths up on Russell.

FP1: Hamilton leads Mercedes 1-2 during first practice in Las Vegas

The seven-time world champion’s effort came just before a red flag, with Alex Albon parking his Williams – which had been sidelined by a fuel system problem early on – at the side of the track around halfway into proceedings.

Ferrari pair Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc were next on the timesheets in P4 and P5 respectively, while Pierre Gasly rounded out the top-six positions for Sao Paulo GP stars Alpine despite encountering some traffic on his soft-shod run.

Haas put both their cars in the top half of the field thanks to Kevin Magnussen placing seventh and Nico Hulkenberg ninth, sandwiching the other McLaren of Oscar Piastri, as Yuki Tsunoda and RB rose from the foot of the FP1 timing screen to 10th.

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Valtteri Bottas and Esteban Ocon wound up 11th and 12th in their Kick Sauber and Alpine machines, the former set for a five-place engine-related grid drop, slotting just ahead of Aston Martin pair Lance Stroll and Fernando Alonso.

Liam Lawson was around half a second slower than team mate Tsunoda in 15th, with the red flag and cold, slippery conditions meaning drivers struggled to get optimal laps in, followed by the second Sauber of Zhou Guanyu.

It was a quiet session for reigning world champions Verstappen and Red Bull, with the Dutchman reporting “no grip” during his early laps and only getting one soft-tyre effort in before the red flag, leaving him down in 17th.

Sergio Perez was 19th in his RB20 after a similar experience, sitting between Williams duo Franco Colapinto and Albon – the Thai-British driver watching the remainder of the session from the sidelines after his car ground to a halt.

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Drivers and teams now have another opportunity to review the data and ponder any set-up changes prior to Friday evening’s third and final practice session at 1830 local time and the subsequent qualifying hour from 2200.