Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton maintained his position at the front of the pack as he set the quickest time during the second practice session for the Austrian Grand Prix.
In very warm and overcast conditions at the Red Bull Ring, Hamilton clocked a time of 1:05.483 to finish 0.147s quicker than title rival Sebastian Vettel, as drivers used the Ultrasoft tyres.
Hamilton’s session was not completely smooth, for Mercedes required to change a spark plug on his W08, and the Briton complained that he still felt he had issues with power upon returning to the track.
Both Hamilton and Vettel saved moments during the 90-minute session, with the Briton sliding through Turn 1 and taking to the run-off, while Vettel half-spun as he exited Turn 3.
Mercedes' Valtteri Bottas recovered from a wild spin exiting Turn 6 to collect third position, with Red Bull pair Max Verstappen and Daniel Ricciardo fourth and fifth.
Kimi Räikkönen was a lonely sixth for Ferrari while Haas’ Kevin Magnussen led the midfield charge in seventh, 1.1s behind pace setter Hamilton.
After McLaren-Honda finished with both cars inside the top 10 in FP1, Fernando Alonso provided further encouragement as he placed eighth, with team-mate Stoffel Vandoorne in 12th spot.
Alonso and Vandoorne are running Honda’s ‘Spec 3’ power unit, which was initially trialled by the Spaniard during free practice at the preceding event in Azerbaijan.
Alonso’s session, however, was not without drama, as he missed a chunk of the early stages while McLaren replaced the floor of his car, after damage was detected.
Alonso later skated wide through the gravel at Turn 6 and spun across the grass as he tried to return to the circuit, before running off at Turn 9.
The McLaren drivers were split by Renault’s Nico Hülkenberg, Haas’ Romain Grosjean and Force India youngster Esteban Ocon.
Toro Rosso endured a fraught session, with neither Daniil Kvyat nor Carlos Sainz Jr. able to complete a full programme.
Kvyat was urged back into the pits with 10 minutes remaining due to a rear brake fire, while Sainz Jr. missed the final half hour following a wild moment through Turn 9.
Sainz Jr. went wide through the penultimate corner and as he attempted to re-join the track on the approach to Turn 10, the angle of the grass verge spat him to the left, and he bounced across the run-off.
Sainz Jr. returned to the pits soon after, with Toro Rosso confirming that his session was over.
Felipe Massa split the Toro Rosso pair in 14th, with team-mate Lance Stroll 16th, in front of Force India’s Sergio Pérez, who locked up and went into the gravel at Turn 4.
Jolyon Palmer was 18th, his best time having come on the Soft tyres, as he endured more misfortune, completing only seven laps due to an as-yet-undiagnosed mechanical issue.
Sauber's struggles continued, with the Swiss outfit firmly at the rear of the 10-team field.
Pascal Wehrlein was over a second slower than nearest opponent Palmer, with Marcus Ericsson running wide on multiple occasions as he classified in 20th spot, 3.3s down on Hamilton.
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