RACING: McLaren's Piastri fastest in second practice for Japanese GP

SUZUKA, Japan – McLaren’s Oscar Piastri set the fastest time in second practice for the Japanese Grand Prix on Friday, edging out Mercedes drivers Kimi Antonelli and George Russell.

The 24-year-old Australian, who has yet to start either of the season’s two main races, completed a lap of the 5.8 km Suzuka circuit in 1 minute, 30.133 seconds.

Antonelli, coming off his first Formula One win in China, was just 0.092 seconds behind, while championship leader Russell was third, 0.205 seconds slower.

Mercedes led the first practice session, with Russell fastest ahead of the 19-year-old Antonelli. The two are separated by four points in the championship standings, each having won one race, with Russell also taking the sprint win in China. They have locked out the front row in every qualifying session so far and finished both Sunday races in a one-two formation, putting Mercedes on track for its first hat-trick of season-opening one-two finishes since 2019.

Piastri’s performance capped a strong day for McLaren, which failed to start either car in China. His teammate, Lando Norris, was third fastest in the first practice and fourth in the afternoon, while Piastri was fourth in the earlier session.

Reliability concerns remain for McLaren, with Norris spending large parts of both sessions in the garage.

Ferrari, the closest challengers to Mercedes in the opening rounds, had Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton fifth and sixth in both sessions. Red Bull’s four-time world champion Max Verstappen was seventh fastest in the first session and 10th in the second.

Audi’s Nico Hulkenberg set the seventh-quickest time in the second session, ahead of Williams’ Alex Albon and Haas’ Oliver Bearman.

Fernando Alonso, who gave his Aston Martin to third driver Jak Crawford for the opening session, was only 19th fastest at the team’s home event with Honda power units. Alonso arrived late in Japan after the birth of his first child.

There were no major incidents during the sessions. Audi’s Gabriel Bortoleto and Cadillac’s Sergio Perez joined late due to car work, while rookie Arvid Lindblad of Racing Bulls completed just one lap. Albon went off into the gravel at the high-speed Degner corners and later collided with Perez in the opening session. He also briefly stopped on track in the second session due to throttle problems.

-Reporting by Abhishek Takle; Editing by Peter Rutherford/Reuters