F1 2024 Australian Grand Prix LIVE: FP2 updates and results in Melbourne after Alex Albon crash

Lewis Hamilton admitted second practice at the Australian Grand Prix on Friday was the “worst session he’s had for a long time” after the seven-time world champion finished only 18^th on the leaderboard.

The Mercedes driver, who has only scored eight points after the first two races of the season, finished on the podium in Melbourne last year but that level of performance looks some way off after the first day of action this year at Albert Park.

After finishing ninth in first practice, Hamilton’s W15 car underwent a setup change which, evidently, failed to work as the Brit failed to execute a clean lap and finished second-slowest out of all the cars out on track in second practice, with Alex Albon not taking part.

It left for a pretty downbeat Hamilton, who moves to Ferrari in 2025 having not won for two years, in the media pen afterwards.

Speaking to F1 TV after Friday practice, Hamilton said: “I obviously don’t feel great. We had one of the worst sessions I’ve probably had for a long time.

Toto Wolff has labelled his wife Susie as “unemotional” and “pragmatic” as the F1 Academy managing director takes the FIA to court.

An unsubstantiated report late last year suggested confidential information had been shared between Susie and Toto, creating an alleged conflict of interest between Formula One Management (FOM) and Mercedes. It was claimed other team principals were concerned by comments Toto stated in a meeting, inferring knowledge gleaned from FOM.

The FIA opened, and quickly closed, an investigation into the matter but Susie detailed at the time the online abuse inflicted on her family and the lack of transparency from the sport’s governing body. On Wednesday, she revealed she has filed a criminal complaint in France, where the FIA is based.

“First of all Susie is a strong woman, she doesn’t take anything from anyone and has always followed through on her convictions and values, and that’s the case here,” Mercedes boss Wolff told Sky Sports at the Australian Grand Prix on Friday.

Hardcore fans of Formula One, those in it for the racing as opposed to the soap opera, must be dreading whenever they see a fresh F1-related news notification on their phone. So often the season-starter in the past, Albert Park in Melbourne has played host to pre-race storylines and the intrigue of the unknown on many an occasion. And this year, any suggestions that the sport has moved on from recent cause célèbres off-track are wildly off the mark ahead of this weekend’s Australian Grand Prix.

A report in Business F1 Magazine late last year suggested confidential information had been shared between Susie and Toto, creating an alleged conflict of interest between Formula One Management (FOM) and Mercedes. It was claimed other team principals were concerned by comments Toto stated in a meeting, inferring knowledge gleaned from FOM. The FIA opened, and quickly closed, an investigation into the matter – but with a lack of transparency and professionalism which has become synonymous with all kinds of dealings within the sport in the last few months.

Susie, who has rallied against sexism and misogyny throughout her driver-turned-executive career in motorsport, will not let it stand. Her family were subjected to online abuse. Nobody from the sport’s governing body spoke to her throughout. She urged the sport “must demand, and deserve, better”. Now we know she filed a criminal complaint in the French courts on 4 March

124,113 people at Albert Park on Friday for practice, 12,000 more than last year’s event!

“A little bit messy because of FP1, damaged the floor and the chassis. The turnaround was very quick, more or less completed the programme, we missed 20 minutes – that’s how it goes.

“It was alright, Ferrari is quick, a few things we can finetune. Nothing worrying.”

Impressive stuff from the Ferrari driver, who stays fastest in FP2 with that 1:17:277.

A decent gap of 0.381 secs to Max Verstappen in second with Carlos Sainz a few hundredths further back. Lance Stroll with a sold time for P4.

5-10: Alonso, Russell, Piastri, Perez, Norris, Tsunoda

Lewis Hamilton, by the way, all the way down in P18! That being said, he didn’t get a clean run in on the soft tyres.

Having come out late in this session due to damaging the floor in FP1, Max Verstappen has stormed up the leaderboard – but not right to the top!

Charles Leclerc’s 1:17:277 is 0.381 secs quicker than Verstappen’s time in P2, with Sainz four-tenths off his team-mate.

10 mins to go, as most if not all the cars switch to race simulation laps!

Key session this as evening comes in at Albert Park – and Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc is the most impressive so far.

Leclerc is three-tenths quicker than Aston Martin’s Lance Stroll in second, with his team-mate Fernando Alonso in third.

George Russell, in fourth, five-tenths down on Leclerc, with Carlos Sainz in fifth.

6-10: Verstappen, Piastri, Perez, Norris, Zhou