2015 F1 Round 14 Japanese Grand Prix FP2 – Kvyat edges Rosberg by 0.023 seconds, Bottas sits out

Rain continued to affect second practice for the Japanese Grand Prix on the afternoon of September 25. Kvyat led with a 1:48.277, just 0.023 seconds ahead of Rosberg, with Hamilton third.

The track was initially wet, but the rain had temporarily stopped. Most of the best lap times came on intermediate tyres. After Kvyat improved to 1:48.277, heavy rain returned and made further improvements difficult.

Rosberg briefly went fastest with a 1:48.300 after switching to intermediates, before Kvyat edged ahead. Hamilton’s best lap was 0.576 seconds slower than the fastest time.

Ricciardo was fourth, with the Ferraris of Vettel and Räikkönen fifth and sixth. Sainz, who had topped the morning session, was seventh after completing six laps in FP2.

Verstappen’s car was checked because of a loose screw at the rear. He only went out about half an hour into the session and eventually finished eighth. Nasr was ninth and Maldonado tenth.

Alonso’s McLaren had some components refitted during practice, causing him to miss the better track conditions, and he finished 17th. Button was 12th and Pérez 14th.

Massa was 16th, with Stevens and Rossi 18th and 19th. As the rain intensified, many drivers returned to their garages. Vettel reported significant standing water and aquaplaning even on the straights.

Bottas did not take part in FP2 to preserve tyres for the rest of the weekend, leaving only 19 drivers in the classification. He had been tenth in the morning’s first practice session and recorded no laps in the afternoon.