George Russell put Mercedes firmly in the hunt at Monza by topping Free Practice 2 on Friday, edging out a strong showing from Charles Leclerc and his own team mate Kimi Antonelli. The Briton's best effort of 1m22.559s gave him a commanding 0.120s buffer over the Ferrari driver, with Antonelli just 0.021s further back in third. It's the kind of session that'll have Mercedes fans buzzing and the competition sweating, especially with the race weekend still very much up for grabs.

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Antonelli's early pace in the session was eye-catching, leading for the opening stint before the soft tyres came out and the real business began. The Italian dipped below 1m23s first, but Russell responded with his own quick lap and then went quicker still. What makes it even more impressive is that Antonelli's running under a bit of a cloud, having taken an engine penalty that'll see him start from the back of the grid on Sunday. That kind of performance despite the setback speaks volumes about his speed and the pace the Mercedes package is showing right now.

The afternoon was fairly chaotic in places, mind you. Lando Norris nearly had a moment at the first chicane when Lance Stroll moved across the line, forcing the reigning World Champion onto the grass. Norris wasn't happy about it either, calling it dangerous over the radio. Leclerc also had his drama, spinning at the second chicane late on but walking away from it without issues. Meanwhile, Max Verstappen was moaning about a lack of downforce in the Red Bull early on and ended up eighth, which'll worry Christian Horner and the crew.

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Behind the top three, Lando Norris took fourth spot ahead of Lewis Hamilton in fifth, with Oscar Piastri, Arvid Lindblad, Ollie Bearman and Verstappen rounding out the top ten. Franco Colapinto had a hairy high speed moment at the Ascari Chicane but managed to keep it out of trouble. It's shaping up to be a brilliant weekend at Monza with Mercedes suddenly looking like the team to beat, though Ferrari won't have given up hope just yet with Leclerc showing he's still got the pace to challenge.

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Saturday's qualifying will tell us plenty about where everyone really stands, but if FP2 is anything to go by, we're in for a cracking battle this weekend. Russell's topped the timing screens, but there's plenty of running left and the Ferrari and McLaren machinery won't be standing still either.

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