BWT Racing Point F1 Team confirmed their prophesied British Grand Prix pace at the Silverstone Circuit today as Lance Stroll set the fastest lap time in Friday’s Free Practice two session.
The young Canadian set a laptime of 1:27.274, just 0.090 seconds faster than Aston Martin Red Bull Racing’s Alexander Albon ended his session in the Stowe barriers after a high speed off. Luckily, the Thai-British Driver was declared fit and well after a swift trip to the medical centre.
The scarlet Scuderia Ferrari of Sebastian Vettel was one of the first cars to roam track early on as the German was keen to make up for lost running in the previous Free Practice One session. Inter-cooler problems on the SF1000 and an eighteenth place finish tarnished the four-time F1 World Champion’s day as his team-mate Charles Leclerc ended up in fourth, albeit struggling profusely to keep his car on the circuit.
In yet another fit of blinding rage from the Dutchman, Max Verstappen and Romain Grosjean exchanged livid gestures after the Frenchman held Verstappen up in the dangerously high-speed Maggots-Becketts section. Reportedly, Haas F1 Team engineers did not notify Grosjean of the faster car’s approach.
Racing Point’s fortune continued as Nico Hülkenberg secured an admirable seventh place after an almost 8-month-long hiatus from the sport. The experienced driver standing in for Mexico’s Sergio Pérez after he was diagnosed with COVID-19 earlier this week.
Mclaren F1 Team also experienced a strong second practice session, with Carlos Sainz Jr. setting the sixth-fastest time and his British team-mate Lando Norris missing out on tenth by a fraction of a second. If they perform well this weekend, they will further a string of strong points finishes and extend the gap to Racing Point in the Constructors Championship.
| Pos | # | Driver | Nat. | Team | Time | Gap | Laps |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pos | # | Driver | Nat. | Team | Time | Gap | Laps |
| 1 | 18 | Lance Stroll | CAN | BWT Racing Point Formula One Team | 1:27.274 | 29 | |
| 2 | 23 | Alexander Albon | THA | Aston Martin Red Bull Racing | 1:27.364 | +0.090s | 13 |
| 3 | 77 | Valtteri Bottas | FIN | Mercedes-AMG Petronas Formula One Team | 1:27.431 | +0.157s | 30 |
| 4 | 16 | Charles Leclerc | MON | Scuderia Ferrari | 1:27.570 | +0.296s | 30 |
| 5 | 44 | Lewis Hamilton | GBR | Mercedes-AMG Petronas Formula One Team | 1:27.581 | +0.307s | 27 |
| 6 | 55 | Carlos Sainz Jr. | ESP | McLaren F1 Team | 1:27.820 | +0.546s | 35 |
| 7 | 27 | Nico Hülkenberg | GER | BWT Racing Point Formula One Team | 1:27.910 | +0.636s | 28 |
| 8 | 10 | Pierre Gasly | FRA | Scuderia AlphaTauri Honda | 1:27.997 | +0.723s | 31 |
| 9 | 3 | Daniel Ricciardo | AUS | Renault DP World F1 Team | 1:28.112 | +0.838s | 30 |
| 10 | 7 | Kimi Räikkönen | FIN | Alfa Romeo Racing | 1:28.159 | +0.885s | 35 |
| 11 | 4 | Lando Norris | GBR | McLaren F1 Team | 1:28.169 | +0.895s | 26 |
| 12 | 31 | Esteban Ocon | FRA | Renault DP World F1 Team | 1:28.219 | +0.945s | 35 |
| 13 | 99 | Antonio Giovinazzi | ITA | Alfa Romeo Racing | 1:28.256 | +0.982s | 31 |
| 14 | 33 | Max Verstappen | NED | Aston Martin Red Bull Racing | 1:28.390 | +1.116s | 23 |
| 15 | 26 | Daniil Kvyat | RUS | Scuderia AlphaTauri Honda | 1:28.426 | +1.152s | 29 |
| 16 | 8 | Romain Grosjean | FRA | Haas F1 Team | 1:28.564 | +1.290s | 27 |
| 17 | 63 | George Russell | GBR | Williams Racing | 1:28.771 | +1.497s | 26 |
| 18 | 5 | Sebastian Vettel | GER | Scuderia Ferrari | 1:28.860 | +1.586s | 23 |
| 19 | 20 | Kevin Magnussen | DEN | Haas F1 Team | 1:28.898 | +1.624s | 27 |
| 20 | 6 | Nicholas Latifi | CAN | Williams Racing | 1:29.958 | +2.684s | 35 |
