Formula 1 Friday Roundup

Friday morning began with wet conditions, Pirelli have brought a new prototype tyre this weekend but it was unlikely they would get the chance to be put to the test thanks to the weather. The rain was set in for the day.

Tom Wilkinson's F1 Friday Roundup

Free Practice 1:

As the session got underway the drivers were perhaps not quite sure which tyre to opt for. Some appeared from the garage with intermediates, others with the full wet. Interlagos is a tricky circuit in the dry, so in the damp conditions it was no surprise to drivers having a few excursions. Even the more experienced drivers were being caught out, including Lewis Hamilton who spun his Mercedes at turn three. He composed himself before going second in the standings, just behind teammate Nico Rosberg. The Mercedes was looking rather strong in the wet conditions, which bodes well for the weekend ahead. At the halfway point the two Mercedes were leading with Button, Alonso, Perez and Daniil Kvyat behind. Sebastian Vettel took a gamble on the prototype tyre, but just as he left the pit lane the rain began to fall even heavier. Red Bull said they gathered the data they needed on the slick tyre and Vettel pitted. The rain continued to fall making conditions very tricky, but it soon eased off allowing drivers to head out once again. There were a few final runs as the rain eventually stopped falling, Vettel slotted into third with his attempt and teammate Webber finishing in seventh. It was an interesting and enjoyable session; these are the top ten finishers.

Top Ten in FP1:

1. Rosberg – Mercedes
2. Hamilton – Mercedes
3. Vettel – Red Bull
4. Button – McLaren
5. Alonso – Ferrari
6. Webber – Red Bull
7. Perez – McLaren
8. Kvyat – Toro Rosso
9. Kovalainen – Lotus
10. Hulkenberg – Sauber

FP1 Analysis:

Analysing the time sheets was fascinating, Mercedes had control of the session from the off. McLaren looked promising in the damp conditions; Jenson Button was fourth and only four thousandths of a second behind Vettel. Daniil Kvyat performed very well in the rain for Toro Rosso. Heikki Kovalainen was impressive once again in the Lotus finishing in ninth. James Calado stepped into the Force India for the session and drove very well. He ended the session impressively just 0.321 seconds behind teammate Adrian Sutil. All in all it was a very interesting session.

Free Practice 2

It was a wet start once again in Sao Paulo, and the drivers hesitated in going out on track. The full wet tyre was clearly the only option at the beginning of FP2, that was once they actually left the pit lane. It was the Marussia of Max Chilton to take to the track first, the conditions were clearly treacherous as the car was sliding around. Chilton was fighting the car in order to keep it on the road, he reported to the team that the corners were not too bad, but the standing water on the straights was a problem. Heikki Kovalainen was having to short shift in order to stop his Lotus from sliding around; aquaplaning was a real problem in the afternoon. With only three sets of full wet tyres per driver, there wasn't much on track action as the rain continued to fall heavily. It was really only Catreham and Marussia providing the action with 30 minutes gone. Towards the end of the session it was much more frantic with many cars heading out for their final attempts. Rosberg had the measure of the field once again, but there was an improvement from the Red Bulls and Kovalainen too. Lewis Hamilton only completed nine laps to manage fifth place. But in this rain hit session, the Mercedes was still looking the strongest car. After a soggy 90 minutes, this was the top ten result.

Top Ten FP2

1. Rosberg – Mercedes
2. Vettel – Red Bull
3. Webber – Red Bull
4. Kovalainen – Lotus
5. Hamilton – Mercedes
6. Vergne – Toro Rosso
7. Massa – Ferrari
8. Hulkenberg – Sauber
9. Ricciardo – Toro Rosso
10. Grosjean – Lotus

FP2 Analysis:

It was difficult to really gain anything from this session, the rain was torrential at times. The Mercedes looked planted in the conditions once again, although Hamilton did spin the car for the second time today. Red Bull made a good step forward and look like contenders once again, while sister team Toto Rosso performed very well both getting into the top ten on the time sheets. Heikki Kovalainen settled in and out performed Grosjean, but both making the top ten. Massa finished ahead of Alonso while the McLaren’s struggled. Perez finished P17 while Button finished at the back having only done six laps. It was an interesting session once again, however it was very challenging for both drivers and teams.

You can follow every step of the Brazilian Grand Prix this weekend right here at Driving For Pleasure with out Live F1 feature. Also follow me on Twitter @TomWilkinsonF1 for live updates throughout the weekend.