Mercedes driver Nico Rosberg has leapt to the top as rain lashed the practice sessions for the Brazilian Grand Prix at Interlagos.

As he did in Free Practice 1, Rosberg registered the top time, clocking 1:27.306s in the final minutes of the 90-minute session.

Rosberg is now hoping for a wet race with the Mercedes squad confident it has an edge on wet and intermediate tyres.

Red Bull’s Sebastian Vettel (1:27.531s) was second fastest after finishing Free Practice 1 in third position.

In Australian Mark Webber’s F1 swansong, he was third fastest in 1:27.592s after clocking the sixth fastest time in the first session.

Vettel had ventured out on intermediates late in FP2 as the rain had subsided with the conditions beginning to transition.

Rosberg had earlier occupied the top with a 1:28.8s which could only be improved on when the runners began putting on their intermediate tyres in the final 10 minutes of the session.

The top three were the only runners to crack 1:28 with Lotus driver Heikki Kovalainen finishing fourth fastest in 1:28.129s ahead of Rosberg’s team-mate Lewis Hamilton in 1:28.147s.

The rain saw some jumbled results with Toro Rosso driver Jean-Eric Vergne climb into sixth position ahead of Brazilian Felipe Massa in his final appearance for Ferrari while Sauber driver Nico Hulkenburg was eighth.

Australian Daniel Ricciardo was ninth in the second Toro Rosso while Romain Grosjean filled 10th.

Although wet, the rain was not as heavy through the opening practice session with Rosberg clocking 1:24.781s to shade Hamilton’s 1:25.230s.

See below for full Practice 2 results

See below for full Practice 1 results