Charles Leclerc continued Ferrari’s impressive start to the United States Grand Prix weekend by setting the fastest time in Free Practice 2 at the Circuit of The Americas. Kimi Antonelli finished just 0.042 seconds behind, while Max Verstappen completed the top three in a closely contested session.
Charles Leclerc ended Friday’s running at the 2026 United States Grand Prix on top of the timesheets after recording a fastest lap of 1:35.291. The Ferrari driver narrowly beat Mercedes’ Kimi Antonelli and Red Bull’s Max Verstappen as the leading trio finished within 0.189 seconds of one another.
The result continued Ferrari’s encouraging start to the weekend in Austin, Texas. Leclerc had already topped FP1 with a 1:36.052, finishing ahead of Verstappen and McLaren’s Lando Norris.
With two competitive practice sessions completed, Ferrari appears to have established itself as a serious contender for pole position. However, the narrow margins between the leading drivers suggest that the battle could remain wide open heading into Saturday’s qualifying session.
VERSTAPPEN SETS THE EARLY PACE
The second 60-minute practice session began at 16:00 local time on Friday, October 23, with Alpine’s Pierre Gasly leading the field out of the pit lane.
Verstappen wasted little time establishing himself near the front. Running on medium-compound tyres, the Red Bull driver set an early benchmark of 1:36.581 as teams continued evaluating their cars around the demanding Circuit of The Americas.
His teammate Isack Hadjar, meanwhile, encountered an unusual problem during his opening laps. The Frenchman reported that he was unable to close his helmet visor properly, distracting him as he attempted to find his rhythm.
Lewis Hamilton also experienced difficulties during the opening stages. The Ferrari driver initially ran on hard-compound tyres, but his first representative lap was deleted for exceeding track limits. Hadjar and Antonelli also lost early lap times for similar infringements.
Antonelli additionally complained about discomfort with his seat, adding another complication to his early running.
As the session progressed, George Russell briefly moved to the top of the leaderboard, establishing an advantage over McLaren’s Lando Norris. Verstappen subsequently reclaimed first place, while Norris struggled with a snap of oversteer during his attempt to improve his time.
The McLaren driver was forced to abandon the lap, leaving him behind the leading contenders before returning to the pits.
ANTONELLI COMES WITHIN 0.042 SECONDS OF LECLERC
The competitive order changed significantly when the majority of the field switched to soft-compound tyres for qualifying simulations.
Leclerc produced the fastest lap of the afternoon with a 1:35.291, establishing a benchmark that neither Antonelli nor Verstappen could beat before the chequered flag.
Antonelli finished second with a 1:35.333, just 0.042 seconds behind the Ferrari driver.
The Mercedes youngster had experienced difficulties finding the right balance during FP1, but the team appeared to make progress with its setup throughout the second session. His performance demonstrated that Mercedes had the pace to challenge Ferrari for the top position.
Verstappen secured third place with a 1:35.480, finishing 0.189 seconds behind Leclerc.
Although the Dutchman demonstrated promising speed on medium tyres early in the session, he ultimately had to settle for third after the leading drivers completed their soft-tyre runs.
The top three were separated by less than two-tenths of a second, underlining how closely matched Ferrari, Mercedes and Red Bull appeared over a single flying lap.
However, practice times do not necessarily reveal the complete competitive picture. Teams were working through different programmes, and their Friday performances alone cannot establish which car will have the strongest race pace.
HAMILTON FOURTH AS MERCEDES SPLITS THE FERRARI DUO
Hamilton finished fourth in the second Ferrari with a 1:35.906, 0.615 seconds behind his teammate.
Although the result placed both Ferraris inside the top four, Hamilton appeared less comfortable with his car than Leclerc throughout Friday’s running.
The seven-time world champion struggled with the circuit’s bumpy surface, which made finding a consistent balance particularly challenging. Ferrari experimented with different setup directions, but Hamilton still needed to improve his confidence in the car.
The British driver will now face the task of understanding how to extract more performance ahead of qualifying, where small differences in confidence and consistency could prove decisive.
Russell completed the top five for Mercedes with a 1:36.035, finishing 0.744 seconds behind Leclerc.
The British driver was also involved in one of the session’s notable incidents after an encounter with Leclerc forced the Ferrari driver off the track.
Russell received a black-and-white warning flag, and the stewards subsequently investigated the incident. They ultimately decided that no further action was necessary.
With both Mercedes drivers inside the top five, the team nevertheless demonstrated encouraging pace, particularly after Antonelli’s improvement during the second half of the session.
MCLAREN STRUGGLES TO MATCH THE FRONT-RUNNERS
McLaren endured a less convincing session than its rivals at the front of the field.
Norris, who finished third in FP1, dropped to seventh in FP2 after recording a best lap of 1:36.373. The McLaren driver finished 1.082 seconds behind Leclerc.
His teammate Oscar Piastri followed in eighth with a 1:36.387, just 0.014 seconds behind Norris.
Although the small gap between the McLaren drivers suggests that they extracted similar performance from their cars, neither appeared entirely satisfied with the handling.
Norris encountered a snap of oversteer during a flying lap, forcing him to abandon the attempt. The incident highlighted some of the difficulties drivers faced when pushing their cars to the limit around COTA.
McLaren will need to address those balance concerns if it hopes to challenge for the leading positions in qualifying.
Further down the order, Racing Bulls delivered a solid performance through Liam Lawson, who finished sixth with a 1:36.331.
Lawson’s result placed him ahead of both McLarens and made him the highest-placed driver outside the top five.
Hadjar finished ninth for Red Bull, while Haas driver Oliver Bearman completed the top 10.
WILLIAMS ENDURES A DIFFICULT AFTERNOON
While Ferrari enjoyed a productive Friday, Williams struggled to extract representative lap times from its cars.
Carlos Sainz finished 20th with a 1:38.446, while Alex Albon ended the session in 22nd after losing time to track-limit infringements.
The result left both Williams drivers well outside the leading group and highlighted the team’s difficulties finding a competitive setup around the Austin circuit.
Elsewhere, Audi’s Gabriel Bortoleto finished 11th, ahead of Gasly in 12th and Racing Bulls rookie Arvid Lindblad in 13th.
Esteban Ocon secured 14th for Haas, followed by Franco Colapinto in the second Alpine. Aston Martin drivers Fernando Alonso and Lance Stroll finished 16th and 17th, respectively, with Audi’s Nico Hulkenberg in 18th.
Valtteri Bottas placed 19th for Cadillac, ahead of Sainz. Sergio Perez, who returned to the Cadillac cockpit after Colton Herta’s FP1 appearance, finished 21st.
The session also highlighted the challenges facing several midfield teams as they worked to improve their cars ahead of qualifying.
FERRARI LOOKS PROMISING, BUT QUALIFYING REMAINS OPEN
Leclerc’s performance gives Ferrari plenty of reasons to be encouraged after the opening day of running in Austin.
The Monegasque driver topped both Friday practice sessions, while Ferrari appeared to make good use of its available running to evaluate its car and refine its setup.
Nevertheless, the competitive picture remains far from settled.
Antonelli demonstrated that Mercedes has the pace to challenge Ferrari, while Verstappen remained within striking distance after a competitive opening day for Red Bull.
Hamilton and Russell also have opportunities to close the gap, although both will need to improve their confidence and consistency to challenge for the front row.
McLaren, meanwhile, must resolve its handling concerns if Norris and Piastri are to fight for the leading positions.
Long-run performance will also be an important consideration. Teams used different tyre compounds and running programmes during FP2, making direct comparisons between their race simulations difficult.
The data gathered on Friday will therefore be crucial as engineers evaluate tyre degradation, aerodynamic balance and the overall behaviour of their cars over longer stints.
With Friday’s running complete, the teams will analyse their findings and refine their setups ahead of the remaining sessions.
Free Practice 3 is scheduled for Saturday, October 24, at 12:30 local time, followed by qualifying at 16:00.
Leclerc heads into the final practice session with the strongest results of the weekend so far, but Antonelli’s narrow deficit and Verstappen’s competitive pace suggest that the fight for pole position is far from decided.
Adhe is part of the 88 Eight Box Editorial Team, covering JDM culture, motorsport, automotive technology, and industry news. The team focuses on delivering original automotive stories, reviews, and insights for enthusiasts worldwide.
