F1, Max Verstappen dominates FP2 in Abu Dhabi. Charles Leclerc third.
Lewis Hamilton fourth, Carlos Sainz’s other Rossa sixth.
On the Yas Marina circuit, which reminds him of last year’s unforgettable joy (when, overtaking Hamilton a few corners from the end, he became world champion), Max Verstappen could only fly. And so he did in FP2 at the Abu Dhabi track, also the scene in 2022 of the last race of the championship.
The Dutchman gave almost three and a half tenths to George Russell in Mercedes and four and a half tenths to Charles Leclerc, who placed third. Fourth was Lewis Hamilton, fifth was the other Red Bull of Sergio Perez, and sixth was Carlos Sainz, who charged a heavy gap considering the brevity of the lap.
The complete standings at the end of FP2:
1 Max VERSTAPPEN Red Bull Racing 1:25.146
2 George RUSSELL Mercedes +0.341
3 Charles LECLERC Ferrari +0.453
4 Lewis HAMILTON Mercedes +0.615
5 Sergio PEREZ Red Bull Racing +0.706
6 Carlos SAINZ Ferrari +0.786
7 Esteban OCON Alpine +0.892
8 Fernando ALONSO Alpine +0.897
9 Daniel RICCIARDO McLaren +0.978
10 Valtteri BOTTAS Alfa Romeo +1.154
11 Lando NORRIS McLaren +1.231
12 Sebastian VETTEL Aston Martin +1.249
13 Guanyu ZHOU Alfa Romeo +1.333
14 Lance STROLL Aston Martin +1.401
15 Yuki TSUNODA AlphaTauri +1.534
16 Alexander ALBON Williams +1.604 4
17 Mick SCHUMACHER Haas F1 Team +1.693
18 Kevin MAGNUSSEN Haas F1 Team +1.769
19 Pierre GASLY AlphaTauri +1.890
20 Nicholas LATIFI Williams +2.116.
It was Sebastian Vettel who was the first driver to win a world championship with Red Bull. The German put everyone in line for four years in a row, from 2010 to 2013. The Austrian stable returned to success in 2021 thanks to Dutchman Max Verstappen, with the son of art repeating the following year. If there was a battle to the last in 2021, that was not the case in 2022.
