Monaco Grand Prix: Charles Leclerc leads Hamilton in second practice

Charles Leclerc delivered performance in the second practice session at the Monaco Grand Prix, with Lewis Hamilton finishing second.

Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc went fastest in FP2 for the Monaco Grand Prix pipping Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton to top spot, while Max Verstappen struggled crack the top three.

Having run over a debris that flew off Zhou Guanyu’s Kick Sauber, Charles Leclerc was unable to display his true potential in the opening practice session. However, the Monegasque put it together in the second one-hour practice to dominate the session with a benchmark time of 1m11.278.

Apart from a brief trip up the escape road at Sainte Devote, the session was everything Leclerc could’ve hoped for as he jumped to the top of the timesheets after finishing fifth in FP1, under two-tenths ahead of his future teammate.

Lewis Hamilton was the man to beat in the first practice session but continues to look like a driver to watch, with third-placed Fernando Alonso some distance behind the leading pair, beating the reigning champion Max Verstappen and the Miami race winner Lando Norris.

The Dutchman complained about severe bouncing during the session, and he went as far as to claim that he got headaches from the huge bumps. Despite several drivers brushing the barriers, it was a clean session that saw five different teams represented in the top five.

Ferrari’s Spaniard Carlos Sainz clearly did not enjoy his first day behind the wheel of the SF-24 as he was unable to match the eye-catching lap times of Leclerc. The Madrid-born ended up sixth, almost seven tenths of a second off Leclerc’s benchmark time.

Lance Stroll and Sergio Perez finished in seventh and eighth respectively while Alex Albon and George Russell completed the top ten almost a second back. The Williams driver was far from pleased with his FW46, and 1.5 seconds covered a tight top 18 setting the stage perfectly for Saturday qualifying.

Oscar Piastri excelled in Imola just a few days ago, but he only finished in P12 in Free Practice 2 in Monaco. However, he does not need to panic as his runs were restricted to the hard and the medium compounds, indicating that there is much more to come from the Australian.

Alpine had a much more encouraging session after their woes in the opening session. Esteban Ocon took 14th while his team-mate Pierre Gasly finished three placed further down the order.

The Kick Saubers of Valtteri Bottas and Zhou Guanyu brought up the rear of the field with both drivers struggling for outright pace on the narrow streets of the Principality.

2024 F1 Monaco Grand Prix Free Practice 2 Results