Mercedes took the lead during both practices. Russell topped both sessions and he finished FP2 half a second clear of his teammate and championship leader, Kimi Antonelli.
The main problem for cars throughout today's sessions was the brakes. Sainz's rear brakes caught fire in the pit lane fifteen minutes into FP1. The mechanics put the fire out, and he managed to get back out on track. But he wasn't alone: Hadjar, Piastri, Albon, and Verstappen all reported pulling and/or vibration under braking, which is exactly the cold-brake problem Baku creates: 2.2 km of flat-out running into the heaviest stop on the calendar.
In FP1, Russell topped the session with 1:45.387. Verstappen was +0.400, Leclerc +0.404, and Hamilton +0.437. Antonelli's session unfortunately ended after 25 minutes of running due to a hydraulic issue. Hulkenberg also stopped at Turn 4 and got out to push his own Audi clear (impressive!), bringing out the second VSC of the session.
Hadjar was told to stay in second gear and came in after eight laps of running with an engine problem. And both McLarens had floor damage. Norris managed 14 laps, and Piastri spent most of the hour in the garage.
As for FP2, Russell topped again with 1:43.347. Antonelli was behind him with the second fastest time, despite only running for half of the session. Then Verstappen, Leclerc, Hamilton, Norris, Gasly, Piastri, and Hadjar ninth upon his return back to the grid.
During FP2, Arvid Lindblad hit the wall at Turn 8, triggering a red flag. It's his second weekend running that he's put one in the barriers. Bearman's engine stopped as he left the pitlane for the restart which was just unfortunate, and Hulkenberg pulled over again in a run-off near the end.
There are two investigations from today's practices. Bottas is under FIA investigation for an FP1 breach. And Hamilton was investigated for impeding Liam Lawson at Turn 19, the fast right-hander onto the back straight. Lawson's radio message was blunt: "Oh my God, that is so f***ing dangerous." Hamilton has since been given a reprimand, his second driving reprimand of the season. Five in one season triggers an automatic grid penalty.
Hamilton's defence was that the rules are the problem, not the drivers. A car on a slow lap has around 500 horsepower less than one on a flying lap under the 2026 regulations, and nothing during a weekend tells you what gap you actually need. He thought four seconds was enough. He's asking the FIA for clearer directives.
And two drivers already know where they're starting. Alonso and Stroll have both been hit with engine penalties, 25 places for Alonso and 20 for Stroll, which means both Aston Martins start from the back regardless of what they do in qualifying. Alonso has taken a fifth ICE, a fifth turbocharger and a ninth ancillary component. Stroll has taken a sixth turbocharger, a seventh energy store, a sixth control electronics unit and an eighth ancillary component. Honda's reliability has been a problem all year, and this is the bill.
Russell is 81 points behind Antonelli in the championship, but is currently the fastest here.