Andrew Benson
BBC Sport’s chief F1 writer in Montreal

Image source, Getty Images

Red Bull's Max Verstappen narrowly headed Ferrari's Charles Leclerc in second practice at the Canadian Grand Prix.

The world champion was 0.081 seconds clear of the man who until not too long ago appeared to be his title rival, at the end of an impressive day for Red Bull.

Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz was third quickest, 0.225secs off the pace.

And Sebastian Vettel was a surprise fourth for Aston Martin, at the home race for team owner Lawrence Stroll, ahead of Fernando Alonso’s Alpine.

Alpha Tauri’s Pierre Gasly was sixth, while Mercedes' George Russell was seventh and team-mate Lewis Hamilton 13th on another day of experimentation in the team’s difficult season. Lando Norris was eighth fastest for McLaren.

The race-simulation times at the end of the session were less instructive than usual, as Verstappen and the Ferraris were on different tyre compounds.

But again Verstappen was the most impressive - his medium-tyre long run was the fastest in the field. The Ferraris, on the soft tyre, were a little way off his pace.

The colour of the sky looks magnificent; a blueish, blackish, greyish-type hue! But no doubt it's going to be a biblical downpour when the heavens open.

Max Verstappen seems to be carrying on where he left off at the end of the Azerbaijan Grand Prix as the top dog of the pack. Lewis Hamilton, on the flip side, will be hoping his Mercedes handles better as we head into qualifying tomorrow.

We'll be back on Saturday at 17:30 BST to bring you third practice and that all-important qualifying session.

I'll leave you with Andrew Benson's FP2 report.

Bye for now.

11. Sergio Perez (Red Bull)

12. Lance Stroll (Aston Martin)

13. Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes)

14. Kevin Magnussen (Haas)

15. Mick Schumacher (Haas)

16. Zhou Guanyu (Alfa Romeo)

17. Yuki Tsunoda (Alpha Tauri)

18. Alex Albon (Williams)

19. Nicholas Latifi (Williams)

20. Valtteri Bottas (Alfa Romeo, no time set)

1. Max Verstappen (Red Bull)

2. Charles Leclerc (Ferrari)

3. Carlos Sainz (Ferrari)

4. Sebastian Vettel (Aston Martin)

5. Fernando Alonso (Alpine)

6. Pierre Gasly (Alpha Tauri)

7. George Russell (Mercedes)

8. Lando Norris (McLaren)

9. Daniel Ricciardo (McLaren)

10. Esteban Ocon (Alpine)

Charles Leclerc comes home in second place with 1:14.208, next up is his Ferrari team-mate Carlos Sainz, 0.144s behind.

Then it's Sebastian Vettel (1:14.442) and Fernando Alonso (1:14.543) who complete the top five drivers.

One part of the track looks sunny with a hint of cotton ball clouds, the other looks like it's going to absolutely chuck it down any second now.

Sebastian Vettel came away from Baku with a sixth-placed finish and he's doing a grand job here in Montreal so far in FP2.

The German driver is running in fourth as the session nears its completion, just three tenths off the top time of Red Bull's Max Verstappen.

Mercedes' experimental set-ups for Lewis Hamilton haven't passed the test just yet. "The car is now undriveable mate," the seven-time world champion informs the pit wall.

Kevin Magnussen, who suffered a DNF at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, screeches on the brakes as he locks up exiting one the chicane. Haas boss Guenther Steiner shows no emotion on the pit wall.

There seems to be an issue with litter coming onto to the track during these Friday practice sessions. As Jack just mentioned, gusty conditions are a predicament for drivers at the best of times, but throw in some wayward trash and it could cause some problems in qualifying and the race.

Use a bin, folks. Don't be a litter bug.

Jack Aitken
Williams reserve driver on BBC Radio 5 Live

"Gusty is the worst kind of conditions you can have in an F1 car because the cars are so dependent on the way the wind moves over the car. When it's gusty it's a problem and when you commit to a corner, if you get a gust of crosswind or tailwind, that can be enough to put you offline or into the wall."

While the other drivers pound the Canadian circuit after its three-year absence, poor Valtteri Bottas is left twiddling his thumbs in the Alfa Romeo garage as the mechanics try and figure out what's wrong with the Finn's car. Bottas is also the only driver not to have set a time.

More weather updates, this time from the silver side. "Wind is still very gusty," the Mercedes pit wall tell George Russell.

A radio message for Max Verstappen...

There's heavy rain on the way (gasp), but it's due to hit in around 30 minutes, so after the session has finished (phew).

A few little spots could fall towards the end of second practice.

Pierre Gasly and George Russell have made their way into the top 10.

The Alpha Tauri driver has clocked a 1:14.879 to slip into sixth, while the Mercedes of Russell is 0.092s behind in seventh.

Image source, Reuters

The biggest cheers from the crowds so far have been for someone dressed as a groundhog hyping up the atmosphere and the stray can on the track. That marshal got a rousing reception as he cleared the offending debris.