Following the 90 minutes of action this morning, grip levels on the Abu Dhabi track were consequently improved, leading to lap times some two seconds better than the ones in P1.
It was Ferrari's Fernando Alonso who started the ball, setting the benchmark on the harder compound tires. As all the drivers started to switch to the softer compound, front-runners started to rotate on top of the classification, a process that eventually stopped with Hamilton some 10 minutes to the finish line.
The Spaniard from Ferrari eventually had to settle for the 3rd fastest time of the day, only one thousandth of a second quicker than main title rival Mark Webber. Alonso's teammate Felipe Massa proved once again that he's unlikely to become a factor in the title fight this weekend, as he finished P2 in 6th place, behind Renault's Robert Kubica.
One worrying factor regarding Ferrari is that both cars driven by Alonso and Massa experienced some harsh tire wear on the softer compound. Additionally, the Brazilian driver stopped his car some 20 minutes to the end of the session due to a fuel issue.
Renault's Vitaly Petrov, McLaren's Jenson Button, Force India's Vitantonio Liuzzi (competing on a chassis 2 from the Indian team) and Mercedes GP's Nico Rosberg completed the Top 10.
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