Welcome back to coverage of the second free practice session ahead of Sunday's Monaco Grand Prix. An interesting session this morning was curtailed a few minutes early, but drivers were getting to grips with the streets and times were still dropping

Just so you know, last year the quickest FP2 time was 1.5 seconds faster than the best time in FP1. This morning Fernando Alonso was quickest as both he and Romain Grosjean looked strong

This morning's session was run in gorgeous sunshine, but rain is now in the air. It wasn't forecast to hit this early - Friday, Saturday and Sunday are most at threat - but we could have a wet FP2

I have seen perhaps my favourite picture of the whole season so far... want to see?

Here you go:

© Sutton Images

That is indeed Kimi Raikkonen's helmet for the weekend. He's a big fan of James Hunt having entered other categories of racing under that name at home in Finland before

Now, even though the rain looks set to come down soon as it moves in from Italy, Laurence has ventured out trackside for this session and will be on the Twitter account so make sure you're following @ESPNF1

You can tweet to us using that account too, or you can send us an email with any questions or comments using the link above

And our first email in comes from Kamal who says: "Thanks for the best commentary as always. Wanted to know how the F2012 is behaving on the track (just by the looks of it). Is it really looking deserving for a top spot at least for Fernando?"

Thanks for the kind words Kamal, and in my opinion the car looks strong in Alonso's hands. I think the fact that Massa was quick underlines the pace in the car, but Massa definitely looks more ragged and on edge than Alonso

It's still a pleasant 23C air temperature and 30C track, but that is likely to drop if we do get the rain. The sun is winning the battle for now...

Kimi Raikkonen only completed an installation lap in FP1 because of a problem with his steering. He has a new steering setup for this session though and should be good to go

The pit lane is open and a number of cars immediately head out to make the most of the currently dry conditions

Chris - in a cold and dark Perth emails in talking about the chances of a sixth different winner from a sixth different team:

"My money would be on Kimi or Sergio, but I would love Kamui to finally triumph. How are Lotus and Sauber likely to do?"

Personally I was a bit deterred by Raikkonen yesterday saying that the Lotus wouldn't be suited to the circuit, but Grosjean's made a mockery of that so far in FP1. If Kimi can make up for the time lost this morning then both Lotus drivers have a great chance, while I actually tipped Kobayashi as one to watch this weekend in the preview. I think Lotus is the more likely victor though

Immediately times are set and Perez is top with a 1:18.800

Kobayashi now top on a 1:17.504 but these times will drop quickly

Hamilton was flying but locks up under braking for the Nouvelle Chicane and skips it

HRT on Twitter tells us that rain is expected in the next five minutes. The result? Every car on track! It's like the M25...

Button goes quickest on a 1:17.095

Kovalainen is on track after his engine change. It's likely that Caterham was running an old engine so there'll be no penalty

Perez was flying but came across an HRT in the final sector and lost time

Maldonado pips Alonso at the top with a 1:16.820

And then Alonso retakes top spot with a 1:16.661

Button's on the supersoft tyre and comfortably quicker than anyone through the opening two sectors

Button goes fastest with a 1:15.746 - he found 1.3s compared to his previous best

The early move on to the supersofts is because of the forecast rain - Kobayashi on them too

Massa continuing to push hard and he goes third on a 1:16.602

Grosjean incidentally has gone second on a 1:16.138 on the soft tyre - quicker than Alonso this morning

Kobayashi with a relatively poor lap on the supersofts

Gary emails in to ask: "Do you think that Bruno's phsyche is beaten due to Pastor's dominance over him, especially in qualifying? Bruno just doesn't seem to have any raw pace at all."

In qualifying perhaps, as you have to remember that Senna had more points before Barcelona. Unfortunately that race in Spain was terrible timing for Senna - he made a mistake in qualifying, but then was doing a good job in the race before Schumacher punted him off

Oh dear. It's raining. Everyone back to the pits

A lot of mechanics standing around and looking at the sky at the moment

We've just seen an onboard of Button's fastest lap. Running flat out from Tabac and feathering the throttle through the first part of the swimming pool takes serious commitment

Still no sign of anyone venturing out. The tyres on Schumacher's car remain a set of slicks

More onboard shots is all we're getting on our TV screens at the moment, with no action out on the track

Poor Laurence is somewhere out on the circuit trying to watch. Except there's no cars for him to watch and it's raining!

Right, if you've got a question now would be the time to get it in...

Krishna emails in to ask: "Rosberg seems to have overshadowed Micheal through the season so far. How do you Micheal will perform this time, having a disadvantage with a grid penalty? I am sure we will all like to see the veteran on podium sometime!"

You're right about Nico overshadowing Michael so far - mainly through keeping out of trouble - but Schumacher is confident he can be competitive this weekend. I think a podium may be out of reach, especially with the five-place grid penalty, but I'll tip him for a top six finish

I can hear an engine...

It's Timo Glock!

Glock is on soft tyres, so the track hasn't got too wet. Alonso heads out too

James Hunt also takes to the circuit. Sorry, I mean Raikkonen

Raikkonen baulks Glock, who had locked up a number of times on his lap

Alonso's first flying lap is four seconds off the pace, so the surface is a bit greasy

Marius asks: "Can a practise session be red flagged due to weather conditions getting too extreme?"

Yes it can, but the clock doesn't stop running.

After I criticised Schumacher for hitting Senna in Spain, Neville emails in his opinion:

"Whilst much is made of the Schumacher/Senna incident in Spain it was apparant that Senna was wondering around in the braking zone. Later in the race Button covers the inside in a move to cover Vettel who then goes around the outside. Senna knew he was on older tyres and must look at himself for the incident. The speed difference was obvious and after squeezing Grosjean at the same corner he should have realised that he was in a difficult zone."

The track is busier again but nobody improving at present

Salman asks: "What time you suggest is about a pole time this weekend if it's a dry qualifying/wet qualifying?"

For a dry session I think we could see something in the mid to low 1m13s bracket. It depends how wet 'wet' is, but if it's full wets then perhaps something between 1m35s and 1m40s

Kovalainen has become the first driver to set a personal best sector since the rain delay, but now it appears to be raining again

Patrick asks: "Is it supposed to rain Sunday too? If so, how big do you think is the chance that Schumi will do great things? Personally I believe that a podium finish is definitely possible if he manages to stay out of trouble. He will shows those kids that the rain king is back."

We do have showers forecast for Sunday, but I'd hesitate to back Schumacher solely based on the lack of pace for Mercedes in the wet of Malaysia. Not a slight on his class in the rain, but I'm not sure the car will be that competitive

Hrishi emails in to ask:

"I know Lotus have been saying that Monaco doesn't suit the car very well, partly due to a lack of mechanical grip. How does the possibility of a wet race (Sunday forecast says showers) affect their chances? They seem to be doing better than the expected thus far in practice."

I think their best chance will come in the dry, but I also agree with you - the team looks strong here. I think it was downplaying expectations after its 2011 failings on street circuits but this is a totally different car

Fabio's opinion on the Senna/Schumacher incident in Spain:

"Regarding the shunt, Schumacher did hit Senna right in the middle of the back, though. Had senna not moved, he would have still hit him, probably in a tyre or something. To me, Schumi simply misjudged the speed differential. What was Senna doing out there with such worn tyres remains up for debate, though..."

Phil emails in from Maidenhead to add:

"Neville (1438) must realise that the person who was in the best position to appreciate the speed differential was MS. He has immense experience and he can see a car in front of him which is on older tyres and is bound to brake earlier. BS did not manouevre excessively or unfairly. The penalty was appropriate and proportional."

For those asking about the weather forecast: As it stands there are thunderstorms predicted on Saturday and showers forecast for Sunday

Goutham emails in on Schumacher:

"Once again, I feel that the stewards have benn harsh because it's Schumacher. Did Webber get penalized after he did a back flip on Kovalainen in Valencia 2010? Did Hamilton get a penalty after taking Maldonado out in Monaco last year? Did Vettel get a penalty for taking Button out at Spa in 2010? IMO, it was a racing incident. This is just too harsh. Just because he's won seven titles doesn't mean he shouldn't make a mistake. Your opinion, please?"

I can't say I agree, Goutham. While you're right about the Webber crash, I seem to remember that Vettel was indeed penalised for running in to Button, and Hamilton certainly got a 20 second time penalty for the clash with Maldonado last year. As I saw it, Schumacher made a mistake and it took someone out of the race so he needed to be penalised. His reaction didn't help either, having called Senna an "idiot".

Kobayashi has been out, completed a lap on intermediate tyres and returned to the pits. Intermediates on Vergne's car too

Neville's response to Phil at 14:48 is:

"The problem Phil is you had the Rosberg swerve in Bahrain x2 that went unpunished after the FIA promised stricter regultaions on blocking etc. If you have a rule enforce it. Schumacher was punished and has taken it well."

Butch emails in to ask:

"What are the chances that we see yet another new winner for 2012 in Monaco?? Grosjean and Raikkonen have been very impressive this season, Hamilton and Webber have yet to taste victory, and anything can happen in Monaco ( Just ask Olivier Panis!! ).. "

I think it's very likely, Butch. The weather could certainly mix things up but I've tipped Lewis Hamilton to win in our preview, and therefore make it six different winners. He's been driving well all year, and as a past winner in Monaco he'll be very strong as long as McLaren cut out the mistakes

Vergne on intermediate tyres does a 1:37.303. Only Ricciardo on track with him and he does a 1:35.0

The track surface is glistening now and you can see where the intermediates are moving water the water as tracks are left

Schumacher is watching the Toro Rossos and Marrusias lap in these conditions, he's leant over seeing them exit from the swimming pool

It looks fairly wet now at the Loews hairpin - though I must admit as the skies have darkened I'm uncertain if we're getting lightbulb flashes or lightning!

I'm going to let Phil have the final word on the Senna/Schumacher clash:

"Rosberg's manoeuvre was very questionable in my view, Neville, but he didn't take an innocent party out of the race. A failure by the stewards to penalise him (and remember that they have more data than we have) can't mean that subsequent offences go unpenalised. That would lead to the nonsensical situation that no-one is penalised for anything."

Good opinions from both of you (and everyone else who emailed in about it). What's clear is that both drivers could have done without the incident!

Grosjean does a 1:35.777 on intermediate tyres, but he's really wrestling with the the car in these conditions, twice turning left through Ste Devote

Senna on the brakes in to Mirabeau and he slides straight on down the escape road. He manages to engage reverse and pull back to continue though

Oddly, Maldonado's just gone straight on in the same place! He needed the marshals to help him complete a nineteen-point turn, but he's back on his way too

He may be confident, but Maldonado didn't read the situation as well as Senna. Having gone straight on he decided to try and spin the car round in a space that is no more than one and a half car lengths. Needless to say, he whipped the car a quarter of the way before slamming on the brakes to avoid the barrier

Madhan emails in to ask: "Is Alonso and Massa driving the same car configuration. Any diff between them?!!? How could alonsomania manage top and massa always down. Would you go ahead and boldly say massa lacks skills?"

Of course, without knowing everything inside the garage I can't be certain, but as far as I know they both have the same equipment available to them. Yes I'd say Massa lacks skills - only slightly and it appears to have come since refuelling was banned - but that is accentuated by Alonso being so good. He's up against the best driver in the field on present form, in my opinion

Another car to go straight on at Mirabeau, and this time it's Perez. He's been wheeled back on to the track though

Solomon says: "On the petty observation, the intermediate tyres look so aesthetically beautiful on the force-india! Color not so good on the McLaren of Lewis Hamilton though...!"

That's true, the green is a good match! We've had a few people asking why everyone isn't going out on intermediates if rain is forecast, but the simple reason is there's too much to lose if you make a slight error and stick it in the wall

Quite a few drivers are getting a feel for the track on intermediates though. Both Ferraris, Red Bulls, Force Indias, Saubers and Caterhams out there

Perez is quickest in these conditions, about a second faster than the Red Bulls and two seconds ahead of the Ferrari pair

Webber does a 1:31.377 - the pace has picked up as the ran has stopped, though the track is still wet

Vettel is told that DRS is still available over the radio

Massa makes it four cars down the escape road at Mirabeau. He's reversed out and continued though

A dry line is starting to emerge again as the sun tries to sneak through. Around Mirabeau and Loews remains wet though

Kovalainen is number five at Mirabeau to go straight on, but he's not going to continue. He says reverse wouldn't work over the radio so he parks it further down the run-off area

The track is definitely getting quicker, lap times are now dropping below 1m30s

Massa does a 1m26.8s so he's the fastest so far in the damp conditions as the track dries

The chequered flag drops with 21 cars on track

Vettel radios in to say "the tyres are in pretty bad shape now", so the intemediates can't handle too many laps as the track dries

Ravin asks: "What is happenning with Sebastian Vettel? He has always been almost dormant in the Practice sessions. Is it set-up and data gathering or outright lack of pace?"

It's a bit of both, as Red Bull doesn't have the fastest car. That means the team has spent most of the practice sessions looking for solutions rather than fine-tuning the setup like last year, but the fact that he's joint leader of the championship shows he's still very quick

Remco from Holland emails in: "One of the teams I have to admit are a little disappointing to me in 2012 so far, are Force India. Another proof that only the looks of a car aren't worth a penny... How do you feel about it? In this surprising season, will they be able to catch up at front or will they drop back along the season?"

I'm with you Remco, I expected a bit more from Force India, especially after testing. I think the car has promise to be developed like last year's, as long as the investment keeps coming

So, what can we take out of that session? Not a lot, to be honest! We didn't get to see comparative times on supersoft tyres earlier and the rain then really broke up the session later on. What we can say for sure is Mirabeau is a challenge in the wet!

Thanks for joining us this afternoon, and especially for all the questions and comments. Stay on ESPNF1.com for all the reaction to the two sessions and make sure you're following @ESPNF1 on Twitter as Laurence speaks to all the drivers around the paddock. That Twitter feed will be your live service tomorrow, and then we're back for FP3 and Qualifying on Saturday. See you then