Alonso was the first to lodge his complaints as the Aston Martin star believed that he was impeded on two occasions by Hamilton with the first incident coming at Turn 12 before another close call between the pair at Turn Seven.

Venting his frustrations on the radio, Alonso fumed: “Hamilton thinks that he is alone on the track. It’s the second lap he does it. Turn 12 and now Turn Seven.”

Verstappen was also left agitated by the placement of Hamilton’s car. The Red Bull star was held up by the Mercedes at Tosa, promoting a furious reaction.

The Dutchman threw his fist up in frustration before diving alongside and then in front of Hamilton’s W15. In response, the seven-time world champion held his hand up and offered an apology.

After an initially promising start to FP2, Verstappen was feeling the heat as he continued to struggle with the balance of his RB20. The Dutchman took multiple trips into the gravel earlier on Friday in FP1.

“My God,” he exclaimed on the radio to Gianpiero Lambiase. “I don’t know man. It’s so difficult everything man. This time suddenly the front grips up a lot, I almost spin.”

Hamilton wasn’t the only driver getting caught up in blocking incidents. His Mercedes team-mate George Russell impeded Zhou Guanyu earlier in the session, while Charles Leclerc was also the victim of one of his rivals. 

The Monegasque driver asked: “What the f***” after getting caught behind Sergio Perez, who was moving slowly on the racing line. In response, he dived up the inside of the Red Bull driver at Tosa, prompting a bewildered reaction from the Mexican. 

The stewards noted that particular incident, but that will be of little concern to Leclerc, who topped the timing sheets for the second practice session ahead of Oscar Piastri.