Lewis Hamilton leads Ferrari one-two in Hungarian GP second practice

Lewis Hamilton leads Ferrari one-two in Hungarian GP second practice

Lewis Hamilton continued a strong run for Ferrari by recording the fastest lap during the second practice session for the 2026 Hungarian Grand Prix on Friday, July 24, 2026. Using the soft compound tyre, Hamilton clocked a best time of 1:18.729, securing a one-two finish for the Scuderia.

Charles Leclerc followed in second place, finishing 0.148 seconds behind Hamilton. The performance left Ferrari upbeat and positioned as the early favorite heading into the weekend at the Hungaroring.

The session proved difficult for several drivers as they contended with low grip, a bumpy and dusty track surface, and gusty winds that picked up during the afternoon. These conditions led to balance problems for many of the leading competitors.

Lando Norris of McLaren finished third, 0.499 seconds behind Hamilton. Norris ran the full day with a new floor package, which the team reported behaved as anticipated and provided small gains over the previous version. Oscar Piastri, who replaced reserve driver Leonardo Fornaroli for FP2, finished eighth while using the older floor specification to facilitate comparative tests.

McLaren also utilized the session for experimentation, testing a rotational rear wing. Leonardo Fornaroli, who drove Lando’s car in FP1, reported that the wing worked as intended. Senior Director of Racing Randy Singh stated that the team remains realistic about their position, noting that the gap to the front has been significant in recent races.

Mercedes struggled to find pace around the tight and twisty circuit. Championship leader Kimi Antonelli finished 13th, 1.964 seconds behind Hamilton, after failing to complete a clean qualifying simulation. Antonelli was beaten by his teammate George Russell, who finished in the top five but reported poor rear balance.

Max Verstappen was the fourth quickest driver for Red Bull. Verstappen noted it was difficult to find a good balance in the car and indicated the team would analyze data overnight to find more performance.

The midfield and rookie presence were notable in the top 10. Racing Bulls saw Isack Hadjar and Liam Lawson take sixth and seventh places respectively, while rookie Arvid Lindblad rounded out the top 10. Nico Hülkenberg finished ninth for Audi.

At the back of the field, the session was marked by struggles and incidents. Franco Colapinto finished 21st, over 3.8 seconds off the pace, and caused red flags after crashing at the final corner. Sergio Perez finished 20th for Cadillac. Lance Stroll ended the session last without a representative lap due to problems during the session.

The difficulty of the track was emphasized by Pierre Wache, who observed that the low grip and wind made the session complicated. Wache noted that the cars must be run quite stiff at this venue, which can lead to a feeling similar to the ground-effect cars of the previous generation.

Looking ahead, the schedule for Saturday, July 25, includes free practice 3 at 12:30pm CEST, followed by qualifying at 4:00pm CEST. Weather forecasts suggest a warm and mostly dry day for the remaining Saturday sessions. The 2026 Hungarian Grand Prix will take place on Sunday, July 26, at 3:00pm CEST, with hotter temperatures expected to make tyre life and race pace critical factors.