Second Free Practice Report & Results 2026 Italian F1 Grand Prix

Event: Italian Grand Prix
Track: Monza Circuit

Weather: Clear & Sunny  34°C / 93.2°F
Tarmac: Dry  53°C / 127.4°F
Humidity : 28%
Wind : 3.6 km/h West
Pressure: 996 mbar

Russell Beats Leclerc as Verstappen Struggles at Monza

George Russell hit back for Mercedes in second practice for the 2026 Italian Grand Prix, beating Charles Leclerc to the fastest time as Ferrari and Mercedes emerged as the clear Friday frontrunners at Monza.

Leclerc followed his FP1 benchmark with second place, only around a tenth behind Russell, while championship leader Kimi Antonelli completed the top three. Lando Norris was fourth for McLaren ahead of Lewis Hamilton and Oscar Piastri.

Max Verstappen had a far less comfortable afternoon. Back in the Red Bull after sitting out FP1, the Dutchman complained repeatedly about the RB22 and finished only ninth, behind both Arvid Lindblad's Racing Bulls and Oliver Bearman's Haas.

Russell strikes back for Mercedes

Mercedes wasted little time showing its hand.

Antonelli initially went quickest on the hard tyre before becoming the first of the major contenders to produce a serious soft-tyre qualifying simulation. His 1:22.700 put him on top, but Russell responded almost immediately and beat his team-mate by just 0.014s.

Then came Leclerc.

Ferrari had not used the soft tyre during FP1, so FP2 provided the first direct glimpse of the Scuderia on the fastest compound. Leclerc edged Russell by only 0.007s, leaving the top three separated by a remarkable 0.021s.

Russell still had another push lap available and made it count, retaking first place by roughly a tenth and remaining there until the chequered flag.

After Ferrari controlled FP1, Mercedes had its answer.

A huge opportunity for Russell

Russell's pace carries extra significance this weekend.

He trails Antonelli by 59 points in the Drivers' Championship, but the Italian is set to start his home Grand Prix from the back of the grid after Mercedes fitted a raft of new power unit components.

That gives Russell one of his best opportunities of the season to make a meaningful dent in his team-mate's advantage.

Antonelli's FP2 pace also underlined just how competitive the Mercedes could be at Monza. His grid penalty means qualifying position is effectively irrelevant for Sunday, but Saturday may still matter.

Mercedes is expected to consider using Antonelli to give Russell a tow if the championship leader reaches Q3. At Monza, with its long straights and powerful slipstream effect, that could be worth valuable time.

Antonelli may be starting at the back, but he could still play a major role in the fight for pole.

Ferrari confirms its FP1 pace was real

Ferrari's FP1 one-two was no Friday morning illusion.

Leclerc remained right with Russell once both teams switched to soft tyres, while Hamilton finished fifth and kept the second Ferrari firmly inside the leading group.

The Scuderia is running an upgraded power unit at Monza, alongside a low-drag package designed for the unique demands of the Temple of Speed.

Hamilton had said before the weekend that Ferrari had been giving away roughly four tenths of a second on the straights. The evidence from Friday suggests the latest package may have significantly reduced that disadvantage.

It is too early to declare the problem solved, but Ferrari has now been competitive across two sessions, three tyre compounds and several different run plans.

That is a much stronger signal than one headline lap.

The only blemish came late in FP2 when Leclerc lost the rear and spun. He kept the Ferrari on the circuit and escaped without damage beyond a ruined set of tyres.

McLaren close but not quite quickest

McLaren remained firmly in the conversation without matching Mercedes or Ferrari over one lap.

Norris finished fourth, with Piastri sixth, sandwiching Hamilton's Ferrari.

The top four were separated by less than four tenths once the main soft-tyre runs had been completed, so McLaren is hardly out of contention. But Friday suggested Mercedes and Ferrari currently have a small edge in qualifying trim.

Norris also endured a tense moment with Lance Stroll.

The Aston Martin moved towards the racing line as Norris approached at speed, forcing the McLaren driver to take avoiding action and leave the track. Norris immediately described the situation as dangerous over team radio.

The stewards noted the incident and confirmed it would be investigated after the session.

Verstappen left with serious Friday homework

The biggest question mark among the leading teams hangs over Red Bull.

Verstappen returned to the cockpit after Ayumu Iwasa drove his car in FP1, but never looked comfortable.

He complained about the behaviour of the RB22 throughout the session and returned to the pits for a front-wing change early in the hour.

His first significant soft-tyre effort left him 0.818s off Russell's benchmark at that stage of the session.

Things did not improve sufficiently from there.

Late on, Verstappen reported that the car was "jumping a lot more", and he eventually ended FP2 ninth. Lindblad and Bearman both finished ahead of him.

Red Bull has repeatedly shown an ability to transform difficult Fridays into competitive Saturdays, so Verstappen cannot be written off. But this was not simply a scruffy lap or an interrupted programme.

The car itself was giving him problems.

At a weekend where Mercedes and Ferrari are separated by fractions, Red Bull has plenty to find overnight.

Lindblad and Bearman turn heads

Two of the most interesting performances came just behind the established frontrunners.

Lindblad climbed to seventh for Racing Bulls and once again showed the strength of the team's current package. He even finished ahead of Verstappen in the senior Red Bull.

Racing Bulls is among the teams using a low-drag rear-wing concept inspired by the reversing design first seen on Ferrari during testing, and the car appeared well suited to Monza's demands.

Bearman was equally impressive in eighth.

Haas has brought a substantial upgrade package after losing ground in the midfield following its previous major development step in Canada. Bearman's car carries both the aerodynamic updates and new power unit components, while Esteban Ocon has only the aero package.

One session is not enough to declare the upgrade a success, but eighth place was an encouraging start.

Bortoleto suffers fresh Audi problem

Gabriel Bortoleto's FP2 ended early with what appeared to be an engine-related issue.

Audi struggled with reliability earlier in the season before making considerable progress, and Bortoleto and Nico Hulkenberg had combined to score points across the previous four Grands Prix.

Any return of those problems will therefore concern the team, particularly at Monza where the power unit spends so much time under heavy load.

Fernando Alonso also lost valuable running, completing only 13 laps after being the last driver to begin his session.

Franco Colapinto survived one of the afternoon's bigger moments when his Alpine bounced across the kerbs and into the gravel late on, narrowly avoiding the barriers.

Monza heat shapes the race strategy

The temperatures were even more extreme than during FP1.

Track temperature reached approximately 55°C, with several drivers using the cooling vests permitted after the weekend was declared a heat hazard event.

Those conditions are increasingly shaping expectations for Sunday's strategy.

Pirelli has brought the C3, C4 and C5 compounds, but the soft appears unlikely to be an attractive race tyre if temperatures remain this high.

The current expectation is therefore a one-stop Grand Prix, most likely starting on the medium tyre before switching to the hard. An alternative hard-first strategy could give drivers the option to extend the opening stint and gamble on the timing of a Safety Car.

The final part of FP2 was consequently devoted largely to higher-fuel running as teams assessed degradation and stint length on the compounds likely to matter on Sunday.

Ferrari and Mercedes leave Red Bull chasing

Friday at Monza ended with a remarkably clear battle developing at the front.

Ferrari topped FP1. Mercedes answered in FP2.

Leclerc has been quick in both sessions, Russell produced the fastest qualifying simulation of the day and Antonelli showed that Mercedes has two cars with serious pace, even if his penalty means only one is likely to start near the front.

McLaren remains close enough to punish any mistake.

Red Bull, for now, does not.

There is still FP3 to come, and Monza qualifying can be transformed by traffic, slipstreams and tow tactics. But Friday has already established the key question for Saturday.

Can anyone separate Mercedes and Ferrari?

Because while those two teams prepare for a fight over pole, Verstappen and Red Bull have an altogether different job overnight.

FP2 Times Table 2026 Italian GP

The quickest lap time of last year's FP2 was a 1:19.878 min, set by Lando Norris in the McLaren MCL39 on Soft tyres.

The quickest sector times during today's FP2 were:

• Sector 1: 27.039 sec. by Pierre Gasly with the Alpine A526.
• Sector 2: 27.784 sec. by Kimi Antonelli with the Mercedes W17.
• Sector 3: 27.546 sec. by Charles Leclerc with the Ferrari SF-26.

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The Predictor F1-Fansite data model

Championship form and recent form. The starting grid joins in after qualifying, then the chances update.

1Kimi AntonelliMercedes · #1237%to win

2Max VerstappenRed Bull · #314%to win

3George RussellMercedes · #639.5%to win

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All 22 drivers: win, podium and points chances

#	Driver	Win	Podium	Points	Why
1	Kimi AntonelliMercedes	37%	80%	100%	P1 in the championship · 4 podiums in the last 5
2	Max VerstappenRed Bull	14%	46%	98%	P4 in the championship · 5 podiums in the last 5
3	George RussellMercedes	9.5%	32%	95%	P2 in the championship · 2 podiums in the last 5
4	Charles LeclercFerrari	8.2%	28%	93%	P5 in the championship · 1 podium in the last 5, 1 DNF
5	Lewis HamiltonFerrari	7.7%	29%	93%	P3 in the championship · 1 podium in the last 5, 1 DNF
6	Lando NorrisMcLaren	6.8%	23%	88%	P6 in the championship · 1 podium in the last 5, 1 DNF
7	Oscar PiastriMcLaren	3.6%	14%	74%	P7 in the championship · no podium in the last 5
8	Isack HadjarRed Bull	3.2%	11%	66%	P8 in the championship · 1 podium in the last 5
9	Liam LawsonRacing Bulls	1.6%	6.7%	47%	P9 in the championship · no podium in the last 5
10	Arvid LindbladRacing Bulls	1.2%	4.8%	36%	P11 in the championship · no podium in the last 5
11	Nico HülkenbergAudi	0.9%	3.4%	26%	P14 in the championship · no podium in the last 5
12	Pierre GaslyAlpine	0.8%	2.8%	25%	P10 in the championship · no podium in the last 5, 1 DNF
13	Esteban OconHaas	0.8%	2.5%	21%	P18 in the championship · no podium in the last 5
14	Franco ColapintoAlpine	0.8%	2.9%	22%	P12 in the championship · no podium in the last 5, 2 DNFs
15	Oliver BearmanHaas	0.7%	2.8%	22%	P13 in the championship · no podium in the last 5
16	Carlos SainzWilliams	0.5%	2.1%	16%	P17 in the championship · no podium in the last 5, 1 DNF
17	Gabriel BortoletoAudi	0.5%	2.0%	16%	P15 in the championship · no podium in the last 5, 1 DNF
18	Valtteri BottasCadillac	0.4%	1.4%	12%	P22 in the championship · no podium in the last 5, 1 DNF
19	Fernando AlonsoAston Martin	0.4%	1.7%	14%	P16 in the championship · no podium in the last 5, 2 DNFs
20	Lance StrollAston Martin	0.4%	1.4%	11%	P23 in the championship · no podium in the last 5, 4 DNFs
21	Alex AlbonWilliams	0.4%	1.4%	12%	P19 in the championship · no podium in the last 5, 3 DNFs
22	Sergio PérezCadillac	0.4%	1.3%	13%	P21 in the championship · no podium in the last 5, 1 DNF

Podium = chance of a top-three finish, Points = chance of a top-ten. Rounded; the win column adds up to 100%.

Season standings · 2026

PThe Predictormodel38 pts

1An Sionnach37 pts

2Shroppyfly37 pts

3Nobodysperfect31 pts

4Leopold Pleijsier28 pts

5Jere Jyrälä18 pts

6Casparovic16 pts

7ipeluri12 pts

8yhee10 pts

9Juandiez10 pts

10Kasra8 pts

11bearman's7 pts

12Mo6 pts

13Raceworks Media6 pts

14Rahmi Can6 pts

15Killabee6 pts

16Carlo6 pts

17MKL6 pts

18Sudhjd6 pts

19Tori Green6 pts

20Marcos Torres Barker6 pts

How the Predictor works

No bookmakers, no odds: every number comes from the F1-Fansite results database. Each driver gets a strength score from the factors below; the race is then simulated 10,000 times and we count how often each driver wins, finishes on the podium or scores points. It does not know about weather or reliability, and it says so. Grid penalties count as soon as the official starting grid is in.

60%Championship formPoints this season, relative to the leader.

40%Recent formThe last five finishes; a DNF counts as P20.

0%Starting gridHow often each grid slot has won over the last eight seasons. Joins after qualifying.

Before qualifying the model is honest about the odds: three or four candidates share most of the chance. After qualifying the grid takes over and the call sharpens.

12/17winners called

1.9/3podium drivers per race

2exact podiums

70prediction points

Calibration this season: when it said 7%, it happened 0% of the time; when it said 15%, it happened 7% of the time.

✅ Don't forget to check out our 2026 Italian F1 Grand Prix preview info.

About the author

Leopold

Leopold Pleijsier founded F1-Fansite.com in 2001 and has followed Formula 1 since the early 1980s. He writes about daily F1 news, race weekends, drivers and the sport’s history.

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