Practice Session Turmoil in Baku

Lewis Hamilton showcased Ferrari's resurgence by clocking the fastest time (1:41.327) during Friday's second practice session at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, edging teammate Charles Leclerc by 0.074 seconds. The session proved disastrous for McLaren, with Lando Norris suffering a suspension-breaking crash at Turn 4 during qualifying simulations.

Key Session Moments:

• Norris' Costly Error: The British driver lost 31 championship points to teammate Oscar Piastri after limping back to pits
• Ferrari's Street Circuit Mastery: Leclerc noted: "McLaren's true pace remains hidden - they're in another world"
• Red Bull's Stealth Mode: Max Verstappen finished 0.6s off pace but warned: "We typically wake up on Saturday"
• Tire Strategy Wildcard: Pirelli's softest compounds creating <2.0s gap between soft/medium tires

Technical Breakdown

Hamilton's Revelation:

"Finally solved our braking issues. The changes we made transformed car behavior - this progress shows our development direction works."

Championship Implications

With 8 races remaining, McLaren needs to outscore Ferrari by 9 points to clinch constructors' title. However:

• Piastri completed only 12th fastest after wall contact
• Mercedes' George Russell showed pace (3rd) despite barrier scrape
• Haas rookie Oliver Bearman impressed with 5th fastest time

Saturday Forecast:

• Qualifying duel between Ferrari's straight-line speed vs McLaren's cornering
• Red Bull expected to unlock hidden pace
• Critical tire management decisions for 51-lap race

Session Standouts:

1. Hamilton (Ferrari) - 1:41.327
2. Leclerc (Ferrari) - +0.074
3. Russell (Mercedes) - +0.291
4. Antonelli (Mercedes) - +0.403
5. Bearman (Haas) - +0.591