Leclerc bounces back to lead eventful Azerbaijan GP practice
Charles Leclerc topped the timesheets for Ferrari in Friday’s second free practice at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, recovering from an earlier crash in a dramatic day of incidents in Baku. Leclerc, who has secured pole position three times at the tricky street circuit, damaged his Ferrari after hitting the barriers at Turn 15 during the opening session. Despite the crash, he emerged unscathed, and Ferrari’s mechanics quickly repaired the front-right damage, though Leclerc also had to change his power steering system in the second session.
Ferrari’s mechanics shielded the car from view as repairs were made, a rare scene reminiscent of a football team blocking a free kick. Leclerc returned to set the fastest lap with a time of 1:43.484, narrowly edging out Red Bull’s Sergio Perez by just 0.006 seconds. Seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton finished third for Mercedes, 0.066 seconds behind.
Carlos Sainz took fourth in the second Ferrari, followed by McLaren’s Oscar Piastri and three-time champion Max Verstappen, who led the first practice session. Verstappen struggled with visibility issues late in the session due to the setting sun.
Lando Norris encountered traffic and could only manage 17th, while Mercedes’ George Russell had engine trouble during the session.
(Source: AFP)
