No Mercedes 1-2 on Friday afternoon, with Hamilton fourth behind Ferrari's Raikkonen and Vettel; Red Bull pair Kvyat and Ricciardo next ahead of Verstappen's Toro Rosso
Wednesday 8 July 2015 11:45, UK
Nico Rosberg again set the pace during second practice for the British Grand Prix at Silverstone on Friday afternoon, with Lewis Hamilton fourth fastest.
After also topping the times during the morning's opening session - despite spending most of it sidelined while Mercedes changed his car's gearbox – he was P1 once more with a best lap of 1:34.155s around the 3.667-mile circuit.
Kimi Raikkonen was second fastest, 0.347s slower, ahead of his Ferrari team-mate Sebastian Vettel with Hamilton next up and apparently struggling with the setup of his car.
The currently championship leader spent time in the pits while Mercedes mechanics adjusted the suspension on his W06 but was still 0.466s off his team-mate’s pace.
Neither could he match up when the pair embarked on their long runs later in the session. While Rosberg lapped consistently in the 1:38 bracket, Hamilton was in the low 1:39s - and heard at one stage to complain that his car was "all over the place".
On a scorching day in Northamptonshire, Rosberg was not without complaint himself - overheating being the German's gripe - while Hamilton, whose slow start in Austria arguably cost him the win there, also spent time working on his practice starts.
However, the indications are that the defending champion and home hero has work to do heading into the weekend, with a record crowd of 140,000 predicted for race day.
Behind Hamilton, Daniil Kvyat and Daniel Ricciardo were fifth and sixth fastest on a stronger day for Red Bull, while 17-year-old Max Verstappen was seventh for Toro Rosso.
Verstappen and team-mate Carlos Sainz had also been fast in P1, with Sky Sports F1's Martin Brundle, watching on from Becketts, commenting that the two youngsters “are coming through here like they're late for the hottest dates of their lives so far".
Sainz ended the session ninth fastest, one place behind Nico Hulkenberg's new Force India.
Felipe Massa completed the top 10, with Williams team-mate Valtteri Bottas 12th behind Pastor Maldonado’s Lotus.
With Sergio Perez next up in the second Force India, Romain Grosjean was 14th after bringing out the red flags early in the session when he spun at Luffield corner.
The Frenchman – who went out again in the closing moments after helping clean the dust and gravel from his Lotus – wasn’t the only victim of the corner, with Fernando Alonso and Roberto Merhi also running off.
Alonso ended the session 15th two places ahead of McLaren Honda team-mate Jenson Button. They were battling for position with Sauber pair Felipe Nasr and Marcus Ericsson, with Merhi propping up the times behind Manor team-mate Will Stevens.
Times:
1) N Rosberg, Mercedes, 1:34.155
2) K Raikkonen, Ferrari, 1:34.502
3) S Vettel, Ferrari, 1:34.522
4) L Hamilton, Mercedes, 1:34.621
5) D Kvyat, Red Bull, 1:35.009
6) D Ricciardo, Red Bull, 1:35.153
7) M Verstappen, Toro Rosso, 1:35.300
8) N Hulkenberg, Force India, 1:35.387
9) C Sainz, Toro Rosso, 1:35.866
10) F Massa, Williams, 1:36.147
11) P Maldonado, Lotus, 1:36.164
12) V Bottas, Williams, 1:36.183
13) S Perez, Force India, 1:36.351
14) R Grosjean, Lotus, 1:36.728
15) F Alonso, McLaren, 1:36.731
16) F Nasr, Sauber, 1:36.822
17) J Button, McLaren, 1:37.196
18) M Ericsson, Sauber, 1:37.327
19) W Stevens, Manor, 1:38.279
20) R Merhi, Manor, 1:39.878
