2025 Italian GP FP2: Norris back on top at Monza

The second practice session at Monza shifted the narrative of the 2025 Italian Grand Prix weekend, with Lando Norris powering McLaren to the top of the timesheets. After Ferrari delivered a home 1-2 in FP1, Norris hit back late in FP2, setting a blistering 1m 19.878s on the soft tyres to edge out Charles Leclerc by just 0.083s. Williams’ Carlos Sainz continued his strong form to claim third, only 0.096s off the pace, as the top three were separated by less than a tenth in a fiercely competitive session. Oscar Piastri and Lewis Hamilton completed the top five, both within two-tenths of Norris, underlining just how close the front of the field looks at this stage of the 2025 F1 World Championship.

FP2 got underway at 1700 local time with all 20 cars eager to log laps, Oscar Piastri back in the McLaren after Alex Dunne’s rookie FP1 outing, and Franco Colapinto returning to Alpine in place of Paul Aron. Piastri, despite a cracked mirror, initially set the benchmark with a 1m 21.212s before Norris—running without one of his mirrors altogether—lowered the standard to 1m 21.012s. Early drama arrived when Pierre Gasly overshot the Ascari chicane, scattering gravel, before Mercedes’ home star Kimi Antonelli spun out at Lesmo 2 and beached his car, bringing out the red flags with 45 minutes left on the clock.

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When running resumed, the lap times tumbled as conditions improved. Leclerc dipped into the 1m 20s with a 1m 20.937s, Verstappen responded with a 1m 20.710s, and Sainz briefly took over with a 1m 20.583s. Elsewhere, Piastri and Gabriel Bortoleto clattered over the Lesmo 2 kerbs, while Alex Albon had a wild snap through Lesmo 1, but held on to his Williams and pressed on. Around halfway, soft tyres entered the equation, and Norris lit up the timing screens despite having to abort his first push lap after sliding wide at the Roggia chicane. His second attempt was good enough for the day’s best time, and while Leclerc pushed close, the Ferrari man struggled with grip—“like zero,” he radioed—before running wide at Lesmo 2 and later off again at Ascari.

The final classification left Norris on top from Leclerc, Sainz, Piastri, and Hamilton, who endured a late trip through the Lesmo gravel. Verstappen could manage only sixth after complaining his Red Bull was “really nervous on every little bump.” Albon’s seventh kept Williams firmly in the mix, with Nico Hulkenberg’s Sauber, Yuki Tsunoda’s Red Bull, and George Russell—back on track after morning hydraulic issues—completing the top 10.

Just outside, Isack Hadjar led the Racing Bulls contingent in 11th, ahead of Bortoleto—who was also summoned to the stewards for a suspected yellow flag breach—and the Aston Martins of Lance Stroll and Fernando Alonso, split by Haas rookie Oliver Bearman. Esteban Ocon followed in the second Haas, with Liam Lawson, Gasly, the sidelined Antonelli, and Colapinto rounding out the order.

With Ferrari, McLaren, and Williams all jostling at the sharp end, and Verstappen yet to unlock full pace from the RB21, the fight at Monza is shaping into one of the most finely poised of the season. FP3 at 1230 local time on Saturday will provide the final clues before qualifying, but if today’s evidence is anything to go by, the Temple of Speed is about to host another classic chapter in the 2025 F1 World Championship.

2025 Italian GP FP2 Results

2025 Italian Grand Prix FP2, 5 September 2025