P2 for Max in second practice in Abu Dhabi: 'Not quick enough'

Published on 05 December 2025 by Misha van der Kroon

Max Verstappen finished the second free practice session for the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix in second place. Just like in FP1, Lando Norris set the pace, although the gap was larger this time: over three tenths. George Russell ended the session third for Mercedes, with Oliver Bearman and Nico Hülkenberg rounding out the top five.

“We’re still not quick enough,” Max says after the second free practice session. “I was fairly happy with the car, but we just need to be a bit faster. Overall, we’re in a decent window around here.”

Where the gap between Max and Lando Norris was just eight thousandths in first practice, it has now grown to more than three tenths. Max says: “It seems like a decent gap we have to close. We’ll try to get the car into the right window, and see how much more we can find. We need to be better over both one lap and in the long run.”

FP2 at the 5.554-kilometre-long Yas Marina Circuit gets underway with an ambient temperature of 26 degrees and a track temperature of 31 degrees. It’s immediately busy on track; nine drivers, including Oscar Piastri, sat out FP1 as they had to hand their cars over to rookies, and they are keen to make up for the lost time. Verstappen opens his session with a 1:24.798 on the medium tyres.

There’s a moment between Max and Norris. Unsure whether Norris is on a push lap, Max moves aside late and ends up impeding the McLaren driver. The stewards note the incident. Shortly after, Verstappen improves to a 1:24.553, putting him second behind future teammate Isack Hadjar. With a purple first sector followed by green and yellow, Max clocks a 1:24.399. Norris goes a tenth quicker, while Piastri slots in three hundredths behind Max.

After a visit to the pits, Max heads back out on the soft tyres for a qualifying run. And quick it is: a 1:23.446 puts the reigning World Champion on top. Hadjar follows at two tenths, until Hülkenberg jumps to second. But Norris has an answer and clocks a 1:23.083, more than three tenths faster than Max. At the halfway point, the top five reads: Norris, Verstappen, Russell, Bearman and Hülkenberg. Piastri, meanwhile, is still only in P10.

Max returns to the track on mediums for his long run, logging lap times in the low 1:29s. Norris also starts his long run on the same compound and appears slightly quicker, though the fuel loads of both teams remain unknown. Over the radio, Max reports that the car is bouncing too much through Turn 3. His lap times begin to drop off slightly toward the end of the session. With only a few minutes remaining, he pits before heading back out again on softs for the practice start. No further improvements are made, leaving Norris on top, followed by Max. Russell’s time puts him P3, with Bearman and Hülkenberg completing the top five.

Contest GP Abu Dhabi: win a by Max Verstappen signed Red Bull Racing cap!

Results second free practice Abu-dhabi: