Norris tops FP2 but warns McLaren must fix reliability overnight

McLaren produced a strong showing in Friday’s second practice at the Barcelona-Catalunya circuit as Lando Norris topped FP2 with a 1:15.426 on soft tires, beating Mercedes' George Russell by 0.009 seconds. Oscar Piastri was third, 0.057 seconds off Norris, giving McLaren two cars in the top three. Norris had skipped first practice earlier in the day and said the car is moving in the right direction but still has “things I’m not happy with,” after entering the weekend following back-to-back retirements in Canada and Monaco caused by reliability problems.

The session took place in hot, windy conditions and used a softer-than-usual Pirelli compound that produced heavy tire degradation and low grip across the field. Teams moved their focus toward long-run work and tyre management after an early Virtual Safety Car when Liam Lawson stopped with an apparent engine or gearbox issue. Piastri showed encouraging long-run pace, particularly on the medium tyre, while Max Verstappen, who ran sixth, reported horrendous grip on his long-run rubber. Mercedes looked closely matched with McLaren on pace in FP2, and several drivers reported grip and degradation concerns.

FP2 underlined that Barcelona could be strategically demanding, with the tyre allocation and conditions pointing toward a possible two-stop race and a weekend where tyre management will matter. McLaren’s pace on both short runs and longer stints suggested the team may have taken a step forward from recent outings, but Norris and the team said further work was needed overnight to refine the setup and address lingering reliability questions ahead of qualifying and the race.