Oscar Piastri set the fastest time of 1:30.133 in second practice for the Formula 1 Japanese Grand Prix at Suzuka, beating Mercedes' Kimi Antonelli by 0.092 seconds on soft tires. George Russell was third for the constructors' leaders, with McLaren teammate Lando Norris fourth.
The 2026 Japanese Grand Prix weekend kicked off competitively at Suzuka, where Mercedes dominated FP1 with a 1-2 finish led by championship leader George Russell. They lead the constructors' standings with 98 points from Russell's wins in Australia and the China sprint, plus Antonelli's main race victory there. Ferrari trails by 31 points in second, Lewis Hamilton is fourth in drivers' after his first Ferrari podium in China, and Ollie Bearman fifth with 17 points for Haas. Williams languishes ninth on two points from Carlos Sainz's China P9, hindered by an overweight car, while Aston Martin struggles despite upgrades.
Piastri seized FP2 early, posting 1:31.495 on mediums in the first 10 minutes before switching to softs for the benchmark 1:30.133 after 23 minutes—a second quicker. Antonelli replied with 1:30.225, Russell managed 1:30.338 (0.113s off his teammate), and Norris, the reigning champion, recovered from a 23-minute hydraulics leak stoppage to set 1:30.649 for fourth (0.516s off). Charles Leclerc was fifth (1:30.846), Hamilton sixth (1:30.980), Alex Albon seventh, Bearman eighth, and Max Verstappen ninth, lamenting 'unreal understeer' in his RB22. Teammate Isack Hadjar was 15th. Incidents included Albon's brief throttle stoppage past Turn 1 and Racing Bulls' Arvid Lindblad retiring early on a gearbox issue.
Piastri's pace signals McLaren's resurgence after a slow title defense start, including a Shanghai double DNF and Piastri missing Melbourne. Technical talking points emerged: 'super-clipping' at 130R cost Verstappen nearly 50kph while recharging batteries on full throttle, prompting Russell to urge stricter energy rules after a qualifying drop to 8MJ. Fernando Alonso arrived late for FP2 due to his first child's birth with partner Melissa Jimenez—'a super happy, very special moment,' he told DAZN Spain, noting no major gains from upgrades. Honda supplied a vibration update for Aston Martin post-FP1 data.
FP3 and qualifying follow Saturday at 2 a.m. ET, race Sunday at 1 a.m. ET, before a five-week gap to Miami (May 1-3) after Bahrain/Saudi cancellations. Off-track, Hamilton thrilled fans at a Yokohama meet in a £4m Ferrari F40, lauding Japan's car and gaming culture.
