Lando Norris completed a perfect start to Formula 1's title-deciding weekend to outpace Max Verstappen in second practice for the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix as Oscar Piastri finished only 11th fastest.
Norris, the 12-point championship leader, headed Verstappen in both of the season finale's Friday sessions with the McLaren driver's advantage in the second hour of running growing to an impressive 0.363s after a quickest lap of 1:20.083 on soft tyres.
"He looked very serene out there, very calm," said SportsNews F1's Martin Brundle. "He knows what he's got to do."
The championship's two top briefly came across each other on track early in the session at the first corner.
Verstappen was informed late over team radio that Norris was starting a flying lap behind him, having originally been told that the Briton was not, meaning he had to get out of the McLaren's way at the last minute.
From inside his car unaware of Red Bull's team radio, a frustrated Norris said "What's this guy doing? I almost crashed". Race Control 'noted' the incident but no further action was deemed to be required.
Piastri returned to his McLaren after missing the first session, as the team completed their mandatory rookie driver obligations for the season, but did not find the same groove as his rivals in the floodlit evening conditions of the Yas Marina Circuit on a single-lap.
The Australian lapped six tenths of a second slower than Norris to finish just outside the top 10 on a weekend when he, like Verstappen, requires a major turnaround to take the crown on Sunday.
Piastri, who went on to make a mistake on his second flying lap on softs at the chicane, trails Norris by 16 points.
George Russell was the top two's nearest challenger in third, just under four tenths behind Norris, with the lead Mercedes just ahead of several surprise runners in the top 10 on F1 2025's final Friday.
Oliver Bearman was fourth for Haas and appeared to be revelling in the pace of his car, saying over team radio after his quickest lap that it was "insane" how the VF-25 was "so good".
Sauber's drivers may also think the same about their own challenger after Nico Hulkenberg and Gabriel Bortoleto finished fifth and sixth fastest respectively at the start of the Audi-owned team's final race weekend under its original name.
Haas and Sauber are both Ferrari engine customers and both outpaced the Scuderia's works team, whose difficult end to a disappointing season looks in danger of continuing on the evidence of the opening day in Abu Dhabi.
Charles Leclerc was eighth and Lewis Hamilton 14th, with both drivers dropping a lot of time on their best laps through the twisty final sector of the lap. Hamilton, though, in particular had appeared on for a much improved position before the final series of corners.
Isack Hadjar was seventh for Racing Bulls in the week his 2026 promotion to Red Bull was finally confirmed, with Aston Martin's Fernando Alonso ninth and Kimi Antonelli 10th for Mercedes.
Norris only needs to finish anywhere in the top three on Sunday's podium to claim his maiden F1 championship.
So the more straightforward a weekend the points leader can produce, the better his chances of claiming the crown. But despite making an ideal start on Friday with strong pace on both the short and long runs, the Briton said there was still work to do to improve his MCL39.
"I mean obviously from the times, things look good at the minute," he said.
"I still want a bit more from the car. I'm not completely happy or completely confident.
"I've been in the middle of trying some different things and trying to understand some things with the car.
"So hopefully there's some more stuff we can get out of it overnight."
Norris then warned: "We always know it gets a lot closer going into Qualy, so nothing to smile about just yet.
Piastri, who sat out the opening session for McLaren's IndyCar driver Pato O'Ward, showed more competitive pace over the longer runs later in the session and did not appear too perturbed by his headline finishing position of 11th.
"I got there pretty well on the medium tyres, just the softs I didn't get the most out of the grip on the first timed lap," he said.
"Finding my feet, but some things to try and improve for tomorrow. But not too bad."
Verstappen, meanwhile, described his day as "pretty okay" but said Red Bull's pace on "the single lap and long run needs to be better" heading into Saturday's Qualifying day on a track where the driver on pole position has gone on to win the last 10 races.
Saturday December 6
10.15am: Abu Dhabi Grand Prix Practice Three (session starts at 10.30am)*
12.10pm: F2 Sprint Race*
1.15pm: Abu Dhabi GP Qualifying build-up*
2pm: ABU DHABI GRAND PRIX QUALIFYING*
4pm: Ted's Qualifying Notebook*
Sunday December 7
9.10am: F2 Feature Race
11am: Grand Prix Sunday: Abu Dhabi GP build-up*
1pm: THE ABU DHABI GRAND PRIX*
3pm: Chequered Flag: Abu Dhabi GP reaction*
4pm: Ted's Notebook
*also on SportsNews Main Event
The 2025 Formula 1 season concludes with the title-deciding Abu Dhabi Grand Prix live on SportsNews F1 this weekend with Sunday's race at 1pm (build-up from 11am).
