Giovinazzi, Vanthoor in Dead Heat in Imola FP2

Photo: MPS Agency

Ferrari driver Antonio Giovinazzi and BMW’s Dries Vanthoor set identical times to lead second Free Practice for the FIA World Endurance Championship at Imola, ending the session in a dead heat.

Both the No. 51 Ferrari 499P and No. 15 BMW M Hybrid V8 recorded a lap of 1:31.040 around the Autodromo Internazionale Enzo e Dino Ferrari, although Giovinazzi was classified first as he posted his time before Vanthoor.

Mick Schumacher was third in the No. 36 Alpine A424, 0.243 seconds off the leading pair, with fourth place occupied by the No. 50 Ferrari in the hands of Antonio Fuoco.

Robin Frijns completed the top five aboard the No. 25 BMW ahead of the Sebastien Bourdais-driven No. 38 Cadillac V-Series.R and the No. 83 Ferrari 499P piloted by Robert Kubica.

Nyck de Vries was the fastest Toyota driver in eighth overall, with Alex Lynn and Julien Andlauer rounding out the top ten for Cadillac Hertz Team JOTA and Porsche Penske Motorsport, respectively.

Clemens Schmid led a 1-2 for Akkodis ASP Team and Lexus in the LMGT3 class, steering the No. 87 Lexus RC F GT3 to a best time of 1:42.944.

That put the Austrian 0.119 seconds clear of the No. 78 sister Lexus piloted by Finn Gehrsitz, while a late flyer by Kelvin van der Linde brought the No. 46 Team WRT BMW M4 GT3 EVO up into third.

That dropped Alessio Rovera’s No. 21 Vista AF Corse Ferrari 296 GT3 to fourth, despite the Italian having led the class earlier in the session thanks to a pair of fast laps.

The top five in class was rounded out by the No. 77 Proton Competition Ford Mustang GT3, driven by Ben Tuck.

No red flags were recorded during the 90-minute session.

On-track action at Imola continues with the third and final Free Practice session, scheduled for Saturday at 10:40 a.m. CEST (4:40 a.m EST).

RESULTS: Free Practice 2