Sao Paulo, Brazil, November 7, 2026: Kimi Antonelli topped the timesheets in Friday’s second free practice session for the 2026 FIA Formula 1 São Paulo Grand Prix, delivering an impressive lap for Mercedes to finish ahead of McLaren’s Lando Norris and Red Bull’s Max Verstappen in a closely contested session at the Autódromo José Carlos Pace.

Antonelli set the fastest time of 1:10.763, becoming the first driver to break into the 1:10s during the session. Norris was just 0.253 seconds behind in second place, while Verstappen finished third, a further 0.006 seconds adrift. Mercedes team-mate George Russell was fourth, only 0.020 seconds behind Verstappen, underlining the extremely close competition at the front.

Oscar Piastri completed the top five for McLaren, giving the two leading teams a strong showing as preparations continued for Sunday’s race.

The second practice session saw all 22 full-time drivers return to their cars following an FP1 session that featured several rookie appearances. Overcast skies, cooler temperatures and occasional light drizzle provided an additional challenge for the teams as they worked through their respective programmes.

Pierre Gasly initially set the benchmark at 1:14.165 on hard tyres before Charles Leclerc improved on medium rubber. Antonelli subsequently moved to the top with a 1:11.857, although the competitive order changed considerably once drivers began their soft-tyre performance runs.

George Russell briefly took provisional first place with a 1:11.036, but Norris and Verstappen subsequently moved ahead. Antonelli then delivered his decisive 1:10.763 lap, which proved unbeatable for the remainder of the session.

Ferrari faces early challenges

Ferrari endured a relatively difficult afternoon, with Lewis Hamilton finishing sixth in 1:11.213, 0.450 seconds off Antonelli’s pace. Team-mate Charles Leclerc was seventh with a 1:11.483.

Both drivers encountered difficulties during the session. Leclerc reported a braking issue, while Hamilton locked up approaching Turn 1 as he struggled to bring his tyres up to the required operating temperature.

Leclerc also lost valuable time during a flying lap after encountering Haas rookie Rafael Câmara on the main straight. The Ferrari driver was forced towards the wall to avoid the Haas, with his engineer later estimating that the obstruction had cost him approximately two-tenths of a second.

Home favourite Gabriel Bortoleto delivered an encouraging performance for Audi, finishing eighth with a 1:11.780. Red Bull’s Isack Hadjar was ninth, while Haas driver Oliver Bearman completed the top 10.

Audi’s Hulkenberg misses FP2

Audi had an interrupted session, with Nico Hulkenberg unable to participate as the team continued investigating problems that had affected Freddie Slater’s running during FP1.

Bortoleto, however, provided the Brazilian fans with something to cheer about by securing eighth place in front of his home crowd.

Alpine’s Franco Colapinto finished 11th, ahead of Racing Bulls drivers Arvid Lindblad and Liam Lawson. Gasly was 14th, followed by Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso in 15th.

Rafael Câmara finished 16th for Haas, completing his first full day of Grand Prix running. Carlos Sainz was 17th for Williams, ahead of Lance Stroll and Alex Albon. Cadillac drivers Sergio Pérez and Valtteri Bottas completed the classification among those who recorded timed laps.

Mercedes carries momentum into Saturday

Following the soft-tyre performance runs, teams shifted their focus towards longer stints to evaluate tyre degradation, consistency and race pace.

Antonelli’s performance provided Mercedes with an encouraging start to the São Paulo weekend. However, with Norris, Verstappen and Russell all finishing within 0.273 seconds of the Italian, the competitive picture remains finely balanced.

The closely matched times suggest that qualifying could produce an intriguing battle between Mercedes, McLaren and Red Bull, with Ferrari looking to recover ground ahead of Saturday’s sessions.

The teams will now turn their attention to the remaining preparations as the battle for pole position and Sunday’s São Paulo Grand Prix gathers momentum.