2024 F1 Round 4, Japanese GP FP2: Only Five Drivers Set Times in Light Rain, Piastri Leads in 1:34.725, Tsunoda Fourth

The second free practice session for the 2024 Formula 1 Japanese Grand Prix concluded at Suzuka on the afternoon of 5 April Beijing time. Light rain meant that only five cars completed timed laps, with McLaren’s Oscar Piastri fastest in 1:34.725. RB’s Yuki Tsunoda finished fourth at his home event.

FP2, held at the same time of day as qualifying and the race, was affected by light rain. With an air temperature of 13°C and a track temperature of 17°C, conditions were colder than in FP1. The lightly damp surface made it difficult to gather useful data, and teams were reluctant to risk unnecessary accidents in the tricky conditions. Most drivers therefore chose to stay in their garages.

With around ten minutes remaining, only the two RB drivers had recorded lap times. Tsunoda had briefly led team-mate Daniel Ricciardo on intermediate tyres. Towards the end of the session, however, nearly half the field headed out in preparation for the practice starts that would follow. Piastri completed a series of laps on soft tyres and set the benchmark of 1:34.725. Lewis Hamilton was second, 0.501 seconds behind, followed by Charles Leclerc, Tsunoda and Ricciardo in third to fifth. The remaining drivers, including Zhou Guanyu, Valtteri Bottas and Alexander Albon, did not record lap times.

Logan Sargeant missed the session because his car could not be repaired in time after his FP1 crash. The rain nevertheless gave him a silver lining: he did not miss much valuable track time.