Red Bull follows up its FP1 dominance by topping FP2 in Monaco

Red Bull once again set the pace in Monaco Grand Prix free practice, with Daniel Ricciardo quickest on the streets of Monte Carlo ahead of team-mate Max Verstappen.

The Dutchman spent much of the session on top but was shuffled to second as the session neared its final 20 minutes when Ricciardo became the first driver ever to lap Monaco inside 1min12sec with a 1min11.841sec.

Both Red Bull drivers surpassed Ricciardo’s FP1 benchmark.

Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel was closest to the dominant Red Bulls, 0.5sec back in third, with Lewis Hamilton a tenth further back in fourth. Finns Kimi Räikkönen and Valtteri Bottas followed their respective Ferrari and Mercedes team-mates, with Räikkönen fifth and Bottas sixth.

The session was interrupted by a brief red flag for track repairs between Casino Square and Mirabeau after 30 minutes courtesy of a drain cover becoming dislodged, losing 10 minutes of track time. On resumption Verstappen and Romain Grosjean then made light contact at the hairpin, with both continuing undamaged.

Renault’s Nico Hülkenberg was best of the rest in seventh, four tenths slower than Bottas, with Stoffel Vandoorne 0.03s slower in the similarly powered McLaren. Fernando Alonso and Carlos Sainz – who grazed the wall late on – proved the McLaren and Renault to be closely matched around Monaco by ending the session ninth and 10^th , the two teams covered by 0.2sec.

The under pressure Brendon Hartley, 11^th, was again quicker than his Toro Rosso team-mate Pierre Gasly, with the pair split by Force India duo Sergio Pérez and Esteban Ocon.

Sergey Sirotkin finished 15^th in the timesheets for Williams, just ahead of Kevin Magnussen’s Haas. Home racer Charles Leclerc claimed 17^th in the Alfa Romeo Sauber, ahead of Grosjean, and the distant Lance Stroll and Marcus Ericsson.

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MONACO FORMULA 1 GRAND PRIX FP2 RESULTS

1	Daniel Ricciardo	Red Bull	1min 11.841sec
2	Max Verstappen	Red Bull	1min 12.035sec	+0.194sec
3	Sebastian Vettel	Ferrari	1min 12.413sec	+0.572sec
4	Lewis Hamilton	Mercedes	1min 12.536sec	+0.695sec
5	Kimi Räikkönen	Ferrari	1min 12.543sec	+0.702sec
6	Valtteri Bottas	Mercedes	1min 12.642sec	+0.801sec
7	Nico Hülkenberg	Renault	1min 13.047sec	+1.206sec
8	Stoffel Vandoorne	McLaren	1min 13.077sec	+1.236sec
9	Fernando Alonso	McLaren	1min 13.115sec	+1.274sec
10	Carlos Sainz	Renault	1min 13.200sec	+1.359sec
11	Brendon Hartley	Toro Rosso	1min 13.222sec	+1.381sec
12	Sergio Pérez	Force India	1min 13.370sec	+1.529sec
13	Esteban Ocon	Force India	1min 13.382sec	+1.541sec
14	Pierre Gasly	Toro Rosso	1min 13.410sec	+1.569sec
15	Sergey Sirotkin	Williams	1min 13.547sec	+1.706sec
16	Kevin Magnussen	Haas	1min 13.572sec	+1.731sec
17	Charles Leclerc	Sauber	1min 13.575sec	+1.734sec
18	Romain Grosjean	Haas	1min 13.763sec	+1.922sec
19	Lance Stroll	Williams	1min 14.011sec	+2.170sec
20	Marcus Ericsson	Sauber	1min 14.173sec	+2.332sec

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