Following the first practice session, which saw Max Verstappen's success, we were once again caught in déjà vu before FP2.
Because almost as soon as the 2024 F1 season started, the old familiar problem resurfaced: the ordeal of drain covers... Haas spotted a loose culprit, prompting an inspection of all track elements - thus delaying the start of the session.
Sergio Perez began the session with a gearbox change, while Valtteri Bottas had a spin. Despite this, Perez was already at the front after the first laps, ahead of Max Verstappen and Fernando Alonso. Alonso feels very comfortable in Jeddah, and soon he took the lead, while Lewis Hamilton held everyone up and dangerously meandered around the track. With one of his moves, he almost collided with Logan Sargeant, who was approaching at a brisk pace... Midway through the session, the soft compounds were brought out again, with the two-time world champion proving to be the fastest once more. For a while, it looked like Verstappen would finish behind him, but George Russell arrived just in time, making the Aston Martin, Mercedes, Red Bull trio the best performers of Thursday.
