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Russian GP: Vettel leads Ferrari 1-2 in second practice

Sebastian Vettel set the pace in second practice for the Formula 1 Russian Grand Prix as Ferrari appeared to have the edge over rival Mercedes.

Sebastian Vettel, Ferrari SF70H

Sebastian Vettel, Ferrari SF70H

Sutton Images

Daniel Ricciardo, Red Bull Racing RB13
Kevin Magnussen, Haas F1 Team VF-17
Valtteri Bottas, Mercedes AMG F1 W08
Kimi Raikkonen, Ferrari SF70H
Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing RB13
Kimi Raikkonen, Ferrari SF70H
Fernando Alonso, McLaren MCL32
Kimi Raikkonen, Ferrari SF70H
Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing RB13
Sergio Perez, Sahara Force India F1 VJM10
#BillyWhizz on McLaren MCL32 front wing
Kevin Magnussen, Haas F1 Team VF-17
Sergey Sirotkin, Renault Sport F1 Team RS17

Vettel, whose teammate Kimi Raikkonen had set the pace in first practice, used a fresh set of ultrasoft Pirellis to clock a 1m34.120s at Sochi.

The German reported an engine hesitation on his out-lap and, after a conservative first flying lap, Vettel put the hammer down on the second to clock a lap 0.263s quicker than Raikkonen.

Mercedes appeared to have the edge in the first sector, but both Lewis Hamilton and Valtteri Bottas' laps fell away thereafter.

Bottas was Ferrari's closest challenger in third, 0.670s off the pace, with Hamilton a few thousandths further back in fourth.

It was a scrappy session for Mercedes as both drivers struggled to get their Pirelli tyres into the right operating window, with their quickest laps coming several laps into the run.

Max Verstappen got the better of Red Bull teammate Daniel Ricciardo, ending the day fifth fastest, just over three tenths clear of the Australian.

However, Verstappen's session finished 20 minutes early when he parked his Red Bull at the side of the track and reported he was "out of power".

The close battle in the midfield looks set to continue, with only half a second separating Felipe Massa in seventh and Jolyon Palmer in 13th.

Between them was Nico Hulkenberg, Kevin Magnussen, Sergio Perez, Esteban Ocon and Fernando Alonso.

Romain Grosjean, whose Haas team tried a different brake supplier in Friday practice, complained of understeer throughout as he finished 14th.

Toro Rosso had a tough session, with Carlos Sainz and home favourite Daniil Kvyat 15th and 17th respectively after their runs on the ultrasofts.

Stoffel Vandoorne, who sighed "incredible" as one of the Force Indias breezed by, ended up 16th, just under four tenths adrift of Alonso.

The McLaren driver is set to start Sunday's race from the back of the grid after the team changed the entire engine ahead of FP2 following more problems.

Lance Stroll was 19th, 1.5s slower than teammate Massa, but he was the only driver who did not run the ultrasoft tyre.

ClaDriverChassisEngineLapsTimeGap
1 germany Sebastian Vettel  Ferrari Ferrari 36 1'34.120  
2 finland Kimi Raikkonen  Ferrari Ferrari 36 1'34.383 0.263
3 finland Valtteri Bottas  Mercedes Mercedes 36 1'34.790 0.670
4 united_kingdom Lewis Hamilton  Mercedes Mercedes 34 1'34.829 0.709
5 netherlands Max Verstappen  Red Bull TAG 15 1'35.540 1.420
6 australia Daniel Ricciardo  Red Bull TAG 26 1'35.910 1.790
7 brazil Felipe Massa  Williams Mercedes 39 1'36.261 2.141
8 germany Nico Hulkenberg  Renault Renault 38 1'36.329 2.209
9 denmark Kevin Magnussen  Haas Ferrari 31 1'36.506 2.386
10 mexico Sergio Perez  Force India Mercedes 38 1'36.600 2.480
11 france Esteban Ocon  Force India Mercedes 39 1'36.654 2.534
12 spain Fernando Alonso  McLaren Honda 27 1'36.765 2.645
13 united_kingdom Jolyon Palmer  Renault Renault 22 1'36.771 2.651
14 france Romain Grosjean  Haas Ferrari 31 1'37.039 2.919
15 spain Carlos Sainz Jr.  Toro Rosso Renault 36 1'37.083 2.963
16 belgium Stoffel Vandoorne  McLaren Honda 25 1'37.125 3.005
17 russia Daniil Kvyat  Toro Rosso Renault 35 1'37.300 3.180
18 germany Pascal Wehrlein  Sauber Ferrari 30 1'37.441 3.321
19 canada Lance Stroll  Williams Mercedes 36 1'37.747 3.627
20 sweden Marcus Ericsson  Sauber Ferrari 29 1'37.819 3.699

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