Lando Norris ended Thursday on top of the timesheets at the Las Vegas Grand Prix, with the McLaren championship leader setting the fastest lap in a second practice session repeatedly interrupted by issues with a loose drain cover.
Lando Norris sets the fastest time in FP2 👏
— Formula 1 (@F1) November 21, 2025
The McLaren driver led the way from Kimi Antonelli and Charles Leclerc 💨#F1 #LasVegasGP pic.twitter.com/zklBK8SSUZ
Practice was halted with 20 minutes remaining after a marshal spotted movement in a manhole cover near Turn 17 on the floodlit street circuit. Drivers were brought back to the pits for a 15-minute delay, but when running resumed, the same area was flagged again. With just over two minutes left, race control ended the session altogether.
The FIA later reported that on-site personnel confirmed the problematic cover was still shifting when cars passed over it, a recurrence of the same issue that caused chaos during the inaugural Las Vegas race in 2023, when Carlos Sainz’s Ferrari was wrecked after striking a loose cover.
Norris, who leads McLaren teammate Oscar Piastri by 24 points heading into the weekend with only three rounds left in the season, set a best time of 1:33.602 on soft tyres. That effort followed Charles Leclerc’s earlier benchmark of 1:34.802 in FP1.
“We didn’t manage to get too much from FP2 given the disruption, but we got a better feeling than FP1,” Norris said. “Some positives to build on and some areas to improve going into tomorrow.”
Norris had brushed the wall during the opening session but escaped without damage. He finished FP1 in sixth, with Piastri eighth. The Australian ended FP2 down in 14th after aborting a fast lap before the first red flag and missing a soft-tyre run as time expired.
Mercedes rookie Kimi Antonelli impressed with second place in FP2, just 0.029 seconds behind Norris, while Leclerc was third before stopping with gearbox issues in the final minutes. “Something broke. Gearbox,” he reported over team radio.
Lando Norris tops the timesheets to round out Las Vegas Friday! 💨
— Formula 1 (@F1) November 21, 2025
Here's the full classification from second practice ⏱️⬇️#F1 #LasVegasGP pic.twitter.com/eDEh2hUWQk
Alex Albon was second fastest in FP1 for Williams, followed by Yuki Tsunoda and Max Verstappen. The Red Bull world champion ended FP2 in ninth, his best lap set on mediums after failing to switch to softs before the session ended.
Despite topping the session, McLaren continued to warn that Las Vegas may not suit them.
“I think this could be a tricky weekend,” chief executive Zak Brown told Sky Sports during FP1.
Leclerc set the pace from the opening laps of the early session, held on a dusty, unrepresentative track that had only just been reopened after regular traffic use. Lewis Hamilton finished FP1 in 11th.
