Verstappen fastest, then crashes in second practice

2017 Azerbaijan Grand Prix second practice

Posted on

| Written by

Max Verstappen was the fastest driver around the Baku City Circuit again in second practice. But he ended the session in the wall.

The slippery track continued to provoke a lot of mistakes during the second 90-minute session. Verstappen skidded into the barrier at turn one as he began his final lap.

A crash at turn eight earlier in the session caused another interruption. This time the red flags flew after Jolyon Palmer’s Renaul struck the wall and came to an abrupt stop.

Azerbaijan Grand Prix practice in pictures
That brought an early end to the qualifying simulation runs most teams were doing at the time. But the combination of a low-grip surface, tyres which took several laps to bring up to temperature and a series of yellow flags meant few drivers managed to complete clean runs.

Verstappen headed the times by a tenth of a second ahead of Valtteri Bottas. But they and seemingly all of their rivals went off the track at some point.

Sebastian Vettel ended up fifth quickest after going down the turn eight run-off more than once. On one occasion he had to wait for Felipe Massa to back out before he could emerge, the Williams driver having gone off at the same corner.

Lance Stroll was the quicker of the two Williams drivers, putting his car sixth ahead of both Force Indias. Lewis Hamilton was only tenth in his Mercedes and had a near-miss with Kimi Raikkonen when the Ferrari driver overtook him at turn one late in the session.

McLaren’s miserable season went on as Fernando Alonso’s car came to a stop before the end of the session. He had already taken four new power unit components this weekend.

An unhappy Romain Grosjean was at the bottom of the times following his now customary Friday complaints about poor braking performance in his Haas, and many trips down the Baku escape roads.

Pos.No.DriverCarBest lapGapLaps
133Max VerstappenRed Bull-TAG Heuer1’43.36236
277Valtteri BottasMercedes1’43.4620.10032
33Daniel RicciardoRed Bull-TAG Heuer1’43.4730.11134
47Kimi RaikkonenFerrari1’43.4890.12735
55Sebastian VettelFerrari1’43.6150.25335
618Lance StrollWilliams-Mercedes1’44.1130.75127
711Sergio PerezForce India-Mercedes1’44.3060.94434
826Daniil KvyatToro Rosso-Renault1’44.3210.95927
931Esteban OconForce India-Mercedes1’44.4841.12237
1044Lewis HamiltonMercedes1’44.5251.16323
1119Felipe MassaWilliams-Mercedes1’44.6091.24733
1214Fernando AlonsoMcLaren-Honda1’45.5152.15315
1355Carlos Sainz JnrToro Rosso-Renault1’45.7332.37134
1420Kevin MagnussenHaas-Ferrari1’45.8312.46933
1527Nico HulkenbergRenault1’46.0032.64129
1630Jolyon PalmerRenault1’46.0612.69917
172Stoffel VandoorneMcLaren-Honda1’46.1742.81228
1894Pascal WehrleinSauber-Ferrari1’47.1503.78825
199Marcus EricssonSauber-Ferrari1’47.3473.98525
208Romain GrosjeanHaas-Ferrari1’47.7224.36022

Second practice visual gaps

Max Verstappen – 1’43.362

+0.100 Valtteri Bottas – 1’43.462

+0.111 Daniel Ricciardo – 1’43.473

+0.127 Kimi Raikkonen – 1’43.489

+0.253 Sebastian Vettel – 1’43.615

+0.751 Lance Stroll – 1’44.113

+0.944 Sergio Perez – 1’44.306

+0.959 Daniil Kvyat – 1’44.321

+1.122 Esteban Ocon – 1’44.484

+1.163 Lewis Hamilton – 1’44.525

+1.247 Felipe Massa – 1’44.609

+2.153 Fernando Alonso – 1’45.515

+2.371 Carlos Sainz Jnr – 1’45.733

+2.469 Kevin Magnussen – 1’45.831

+2.641 Nico Hulkenberg – 1’46.003

+2.699 Jolyon Palmer – 1’46.061

+2.812 Stoffel Vandoorne – 1’46.174

+3.788 Pascal Wehrlein – 1’47.150

+3.985 Marcus Ericsson – 1’47.347

+4.360 Romain Grosjean – 1’47.722

Drivers more then ten seconds off the pace omitted.

Best times by tyre

DriverTeamBest super-soft timeSuper-soft gapBest soft timeSoft gapBest medium timeMedium gap
Lewis HamiltonMercedes1’49.4946.1321’44.5250.631None
Valtteri BottasMercedes1’43.4620.11’46.1152.221None
Daniel RicciardoRed Bull1’43.4730.1111’44.1140.22None
Max VerstappenRed Bull1’43.3621’43.894None
Sebastian VettelFerrari1’43.6150.2531’45.7341.84None
Kimi RaikkonenFerrari1’43.4890.1271’44.8750.981None
Sergio PerezForce India1’46.8193.4571’44.3060.412None
Esteban OconForce India1’44.4841.1221’44.5140.62None
Felipe MassaWilliams1’44.6091.247None1’46.343
Lance StrollWilliams1’44.1130.7511’45.5971.703None
Fernando AlonsoMcLaren1’45.5152.1531’46.0242.13None
Stoffel VandoorneMcLaren1’46.1742.8121’46.9353.041None
Carlos Sainz JnrToro Rosso1’45.7332.3711’45.8011.907None
Daniil KvyatToro Rosso1’44.3210.9591’46.8682.974None
Romain GrosjeanHaas1’47.8354.4731’47.7223.828None
Kevin MagnussenHaas1’45.8312.4691’46.7882.894None
Nico HulkenbergRenault1’46.2832.9211’46.0032.109None
Jolyon PalmerRenault1’46.0612.6991’49.0185.124None
Marcus EricssonSauber1’47.3473.9851’48.6994.805None
Pascal WehrleinSauber1’47.1503.7881’49.0665.172None

Author information

Keith Collantine
Lifelong motor sport fan Keith set up RaceFans in 2005 - when it was originally called F1 Fanatic. Having previously worked as a motoring...

Got a potential story, tip or enquiry? Find out more about RaceFans and contact us here.

56 comments on “Verstappen fastest, then crashes in second practice”

  1. Odd one the Verstappen spin. It gave me the impression that the right rear suspension failed.

    1. Just watched a video on youtube of the “crash” and the rear tyres where already not following straight before the spin. Seems the axle(or something) was already broken before the corner. Also in the middle of the corner the wheels made a sudden opposite movement.

      1. Indeed! His right rear tire was not tracking straight.
        After the crash it was at least 20 degrees askew – that was strange, since that wheel did not hit anything. But even before the crash it was visible.
        I think the suspension failed midcorner.

    2. When I saw it the first time, I thought he’d attempted a spin turn to get straight back on track (a bit like one of Bottas’s) and just misjudged it.

      After watching replays, I still think that, it certainly looks like the rear tyres are under load as he gave it the beans. Probably explains the damage too as the rear accelerated into the barrier.

      1. He did not ‘give it the beans’. If he did you’d see the wheel spin faster. It does not.
        As David Croft and Johnny Herbert mentioned, the rear right suspension failed.
        It probably broke before the corner, sinking the rear right which lowered pressure on the front left, hence the lockup there.

  2. Pierre Racine
    23rd June 2017, 15:27

    Forget Verstappen. This session real deal is Lance Stroll who finished an astonishing 6th, half a second ahead of Massa! The kid is learning fast since Montreal and I think we’ll learn a LOT more from him in the coming months. So everyone who thought he was not up to it and bashed him hard were… WRONG. He’s obviously able to drive an F1 car and quite fast may I say.

    1. Unfortunately didn’t watch FPs, don’t know what compounds etc. , but good for him. Let’s wait till the end of the season.

    2. he is the one
      23rd June 2017, 15:43

      wait for Q and then you may blow the trompet. And btw is it not remarkable that Red Bull (MV) is leading those both sessions. I give credits to Stroll for his achievement but this free practice sessions belongs to MAX

      1. Is a trompet a type of trumbone?

        1. Is a trumbone a type of trombone?

          1. Keep up David

    3. Yes, well done for finishing ahead in 1 practice session.

      Let’s see what happens in qualifying.

    4. This is just FP… In qualy Massa shredded him so far, 7-0. And it’s Massa we’re talking about, not Hamilton…

    5. Lance is just not that good! It’s clear in his qualifying performances against Massa who is not the fastest & in his race pace.

      My best friend taught Lance in karting & even he shyly admits he was lucky to have the best equipment because of his dad (new chassis every 3 races while other kids kept the same twisted chassis for a full season).

      It took him his 2nd year in F3 to win the championship yet look at Lewis, booth Nico’s they both won GP2 in their FIRST season.

    6. Okay, Lance. That’s enough. You aren’t fooling anyone.

    7. Let’s wait for a session that matters. We don’t know how much fuel was in his car and this was a long-run session for most.

  3. Rumours that Kubica will go in the car for FP1 at Monza… He really should try sooner, Palmer is just… ugh. Still can’t beat Hulk even when Hulk did a lap on softs and he was on super softs.

    1. That would be amazing to see. Even if he doesn’t do well, it’s not like Renault have anything to lose and everyone would still be happy for him since not long ago that seemed impossible.

  4. OmarRoncal - Go Seb!!! (@)
    23rd June 2017, 15:33

    Is it too early to adjust my predictions in the competition? Mmm and I thought the Mercs were going to be the real deal here.

    1. They probably will be tomorrow

      1. They will be.
        Q3 engine mode has yet to be unleashed.

  5. MG421982 (@)
    23rd June 2017, 15:43

    Let’s not get too excited yet. Ferrari topped many times the FPs in the last few years, but they were uncompetitive in the races. Still many chances RBR might qualify and/or finish the race 5th and 6th, although the gap could be a lot smaller this time. Only the Quali will show the real pace.

  6. Sundar Srinivas Harish
    23rd June 2017, 15:49

    @keithcollantine Could you put up the table creaking down times by tire if possible?

  7. Looks like Hamilton’s tire troubles are back. I’m wondering if he is just not adapting his style, especially his braking, to this super-long car Mercedes has, getting it to rotate in slow corners and getting the tires working.. Having driven the prior iteration of the car, he may just have assumptions and habits in the car that need breaking, whereas Bottas, coming in with no expectations, is getting it more easily.

    1. MG421982 (@)
      23rd June 2017, 16:45

      He was on Softs (not SuperSofts) if I’m not wrong, so still early.

      1. Super Soft

        1. The best time was on softs. He made mistakes with the super softs and also had to slow down due to yellows and the red flag caused by Palmer.

  8. Red Bull’s pace seems genuine, but you know, that means little at this moment.

    1. ExcitedAbout17
      23rd June 2017, 22:04

      Don’t forget that RBR was the second fastest car on the straight in Montreal. This is a speed circuit as well.
      They seem to have found a way to work with the low downforce set-up. Quite impressive for a team which was the king of the corners before.

      1. And at the same time best in sector 2

  9. So far not a bad day .
    Stroll, the polite youngster is doing well while Verstappen , the disrespectful youngster crashed . The contrast is stark and at least for the moment justice seems to have been served . I hope it stays that way come Sunday with Stroll ( again the polite youngster) in the points and Verstappen ( again the disrespectful youngster ) out of the running .
    It is also good to see Ocon ( another apparently polite youngster ) doing well. Hope he finishes in the points on Sunday .
    Perhaps , as noted by Hamilton’s woes, a 1,500 person team and an unlimited budget is not enough to dominate for 4 consecutive years and we will actually get to see a full season of races this years. Todays results give us some hope in that direction so…
    as previously noted : so far not a bad day .

    1. And I hope your wrong. Verstappen deserves a good result after his bad luck in the last three races. After saying that i think today’s pace is not realistic and that he will qualify in p5 or 6. Stroll problably will be a 0,5 seconds slower then massa tomorrow.

    2. What on earth has politeness has to do with anything Richie?

      Excuse me, would you terribly mind moving your mercedes so I can attempt to overtake? Well not at all my good man, you may do so at your earliest convenience! You’re indeed a true gentleman and may I say well driven Sir!

      We are trying to enjoy (hard) racing over here, please go and watch cricket instead. (notice the please).

    3. Are you on drugs again, my dear?

      1. I think he forgot to take them

    4. So Verstappen should ask permission to pass. Nice thought.. not.

    5. Richard are u from the crash forum??a simple yes or no?

    6. Is this a wind up?

  10. This whole session was a joke. Either manage tire pressures better or allow ultra-softs.
    The pinnacle of racing shouldn’t be a clown show

  11. Reanult has an engine upgrade according to Cyril Abiteboul, so I imagine the Bulls pace might be genuine.
    The thing is how much Mercedes and Ferrari will improve tomorrow.

    1. Yes, he claimed about 0.2 seconds with the new settings ( not really a hardware update probably)

    2. Yes, may depend on how much blow-by oil is getting from the crankcase to the plenum, and whether MB is using Jet-A instead of oil for qualifying.

  12. I must admit that I now love this track. By far the most interesting FP this year. That wall (Perez crash) is like a mugger hiding in the dark.

    1. Been working all day so not had chance to watch any footage, from what you have seen are the troubles tyre grip related and/or the wider cars contributing as well?

  13. I thought only Palmer had crashed in FP2.

  14. I think the lack of grip was exasperated by the track being shaded from sunlight however the tyres look much too hard and the cars were sliding everywhere. Maybe this is why MV rose to the top?

  15. CryMax, the new Alonso on the block:
    “At the end I locked up at turn 1, I could see I wasn’t going to make the corner so decided to take the run off, as I turned right I lost the rear and ended up sliding into the wall.”
    He crash by his mistake, but he said this was his best FP!!!

    1. The explanation seems correct and he is not blaming anyone but himself there. So I don’t know what you are on about.

    2. At least he crashes trying

  16. So the RedBull car is the fastest in a pure speed track, I wonder what are they going to cry about Next, The Renault PU is within the 98-99% of Mercedes performance, RBR have underperformed in the previous races because of that “clean-lean” design of their chassis, and the overdriving of a desperate Verstappen.

    1. I suspect Mercedes were on Friday engines set to Strat mode “Honda”

    2. Not really. Dutch TV said that the RedBull win 0.6s in the thight sector 2 and then lose 0.5s on the long straight.

  17. Arad (@just-an-fan)
    23rd June 2017, 22:42

    Looks like when skills matters, a certain driver crumbles!!

    1. Genuinely no idea who you are talking about…

    2. @just-an-fan

      Yeah he just put it on pole where was Vet?

Comments are closed.