Max Verstappen set the pace as Mercedes appeared to keep their powder dry in Practice 2 for the Belgian Grand Prix.
In the first low fuel simulations of the weekend, the Dutchman would go fastest with a 1m43.744s to lead his former Red Bull teammate Daniel Ricciardo in second, as Renault appeared to turn up their engines more than most.
There would later be trouble for the Australian as he pulled over on the Kemmel Straight during the long run with a loss of hydraulic pressure.
Lewis Hamilton was also within a tenth of Verstappen in third, but crucially, a lack of top speed on the straights suggested the Brackley-based team was still using low engine modes, while the Briton himself made a mess of the Bus Stop chicane on his best lap.
Alex Albon was fourth in the second Red Bull with Sergio Perez and morning pacesetter Valtteri Bottas rounding out the top six.
Lando Norris suffered a loss of power in the early stages of FP2 but was soon back on track as the two McLarens and Esteban Ocon continued their tight duel behind the top three teams in P7-P9.
Pierre Gasly completed the top 10 for AlphaTauri.
Lance Stroll didn’t set a representative fast lap in P11, but his long run was pretty impressive as Racing Point looks to nag the Mercedes and Verstappen this weekend.
The difficult day for Ferrari-powered teams continued with Alfa Romeo ahead of the works team again in Practice 2.
Indeed, the SF1000 looked a real handful for Sebastian Vettel and Charles Leclerc, particularly under braking, as the two drivers were only 17th and 15th fastest respectively.
George Russell was able to split the two Maranello cars in 16th for Williams, as Haas completed the standings after getting both cars back out on track in the second half of the session, following their duel engine issues in the morning.
Full results from Practice 2 can be seen below:
