Lewis Hamilton finishes behind Daniil Kvyat and Daniel Ricciardo in fourth; P1 pacesetter Max Verstappen crashes and misses session; Both McLarens in top 10 before rain arrives in closing minutes
Monday 2 November 2015 11:10, UK
Nico Rosberg rebounded from a brake fire in first practice to set the pace ahead of the impressive Red Bulls in Practice Two, after an eventful first day at the revived Mexican GP.
In a session that proved the opposite of P1, with dry conditions followed by rain late on, Rosberg ended day one on top by two tenths of a second courtesy of a best lap of 1:21.531.
Newly crowned three-time champion Lewis Hamilton finished fourth, 0.4s off his team-mate's pace, as Red Bull's Daniil Kvyat and Daniel Ricciardo split the Mercedes' to cap an eye-catching Friday for the team.
"We've got a pretty decent car to start the weekend with," Red Bull team principal Christian Horner told Sky Sports F1.
"The worst sector will be sector one, but sectors two and three you can see we're [quick]. If we can find a bit more time in sector one I think we can be competitive this weekend."
Although, on paper, the Mexico City circuit should not be expected to suit the Renault-powered RB11 - particularly the kilometre-long main straight - the car seems to be at home in the low-grip conditions which dominated Friday's running.
Those were underlined in the early minutes of P2, as just hours after topping an F1 timesheet for the first time in his nascent career, Max Verstappen promptly crashed his Toro Rosso after running wide exiting the track's atmospheric, and unique, stadium section. The 18-year-old lost the remainder of the session.
Williams' Valtteri Bottas then the wall at Turn One, although the Finn was able to continue after only losing a front wing. Hamilton also had a 180-degree spin, with numerous other drivers running off the circuit during the course of the 90 minutes.
Hamilton was initially quicker than Rosberg on the soft-tyre runs, but his team-mate found more time on his second flying lap. "Challenging, challenging," the world champion replied when asked to sum up his Friday. "I think it was for everyone. But it was fun."
Red Bull's show of speed relegated the Ferraris of Sebastian Vettel and Kimi Raikkonen to fifth and sixth respectively, although they also lapped within half a second of Mercedes.
Friday's second session, however, proved surprisingly positive for McLaren as both Fernando Alonso and Jenson Button finished inside the top 10.
The team, expecting a tough weekend at a venue where high altitude places more strain on engines and their turbo compressors, have already taken a multitude of penalties with both of their cars.
Button missed the early stages of P2 while McLaren worked to install his second fresh engine of the weekend and rectify a sensor problem.
Practice Two times:
1. Nico Rosberg, Mercedes, 1:21.531
2. Daniil Kvyat, Red Bull, 1:21.776
3. Daniel Ricciardo, Red Bull, 1:21.868
4. Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes, 1:21.961
5. Sebastian Vettel, Ferrari, 1:21.984
6. Kimi Raikkonen, Ferrari, 1:22.399
7. Valtteri Bottas, Williams, 1:22.721
8. Fernando Alonso, McLaren, 1:22.993
9. Jenson Button, McLaren, 1:23.109
10. Felipe Massa, Williams, 1:23.289
11. Nico Hulkenberg, Force India, 1:23.290
12. Pastor Maldonado, Lotus, 1:23.363
13. Carlos Sainz, Toro Rosso, 1:23.364
14. Felipe Nasr, Sauber, 1:23.430
15. Sergio Perez, Force India, 1:23.597
16. Romain Grosjean, Lotus, 1:23.614
17. Marcus Ericsson, Sauber, 1:24.533
18. Alexander Rossi, Manor, 1:25.940
19. Will Stevens, Manor, 1:26.968
20. Max Verstappen, Toro Rosso, No time
