Formula 1 Friday Roundup

Today's practice sessions have been dominated by Lewis Hamilton, finishing on top of the timesheets ahead of main rival Sebastian Vettel in both sessions. The Mercedes had the edge over the Red Bull's all day as they appeared to have improved their tyre problems. Vettel had the high ground over teammate Webber, but there were just a tenth or so in it.

It was a dry and sunny day in Yeongam so conditions were perfect for pushing hard and finding the limit. Kimi Raikkonen found the limit in his Lotus, but then went over it in dramatic fashion. The Finn went flying into the barriers on the exit of the final turn in the dying minutes of FP1, ending his session. The Lotus team had a good first practice as Grosjean was leading Raikkonen, but with that heavy crash the mechanics had their work cut out to repair the car.

It was a green track early on and the grip wasn't much to be desired, it did catch a number of drivers out. The young Venezuelan Rodolfo Gonzalez standing in for Jules Bianchi at Marussia, damaged the car after an excursion at turn 12. Ferrari could have had a better morning as Massa had limited running after suffering a puncture. In FP2 the Brazilian had a much better session out performing teammate Fernando Alonso.

Analysing today's practice times Ferrari must improve on pace, as they are in danger of being challenged by Lotus and possibly McLaren. Jenson Button and Sergio Perez had a relatively good day in the McLaren's, FP1 saw Button making it into the top 5 on the timesheets.

These are the top 10 times from today's Practice sessions.

FP1
1. Lewis Hamilton Mercedes 1:39.630
2. Sebastian Vettel Red Bull Racing 1:39.667
3. Mark Webber Red Bull Racing 1:39.816
4. Nico Rosberg Mercedes 1:40.117
5. Jenson Button McLaren 1:40.215
6. Fernando Alonso Ferrari 1:40.374
7. Romain Grosjean Lotus 1:40.396
8. Kimi Räikkönen Lotus 1:40.677
9. Sergio Perez McLaren 1:40.860
10.Felipe Massa Ferrari 1:40.880

FP2
1. Lewis Hamilton Mercedes 1:38.673
2. Sebastian Vettel Red Bull Racing 1:38.781
3. Nico Rosberg Mercedes 1:38.797
4. Mark Webber Red Bull Racing 1:38.844
5. Felipe Massa Ferrari 1:39.114
6. Romain Grosjean Lotus 1:39.226
7. Fernando Alonso Ferrari 1:39.444
8. Kimi Räikkönen Lotus 1:39.757
9. Jenson Button McLaren 1:39.774
10.Adrian Sutil Force India 1:40.006

News Roundup.

Sauber have announced an extension to their Ferrari engine partnership into 2014 and beyond. Team Principal Monisha Kaltenborn said “We are pleased to extend our technical partnership with Ferrari taking Sauber into the new era of engines that starts in 2014, “Ferrari has been a long standing partner of the team, first from 1997 to 2005 and then again from 2010 onwards. We are proud to extend our relationship with such a prestigious and renowned brand and look forward to entering the 2014 season with a strong and reliable partner like Ferrari.”

The Bahrain International Circuit will host the second and third pre-season tests next year ahead on the first race in Melbourne. Many of the teams believe it is the perfect place to test the new V6 Turbo engines due to the warm weather and the nature of the track itself. Force India team manager Andy Stevenson said, “As far as a pre-season test venue for the new power units, I couldn’t think of a better place to go, “The temperatures aren’t going to be that hot – they will probably be 22c or 23c at that time of year and it is actually a very good way of bringing the crews up to speed and ready for a hard season. I think the dates that are scheduled are pretty good.”

Tom Wilkinson's Practice Points.

Mercedes were the strongest team out on track today and particularly Lewis Hamilton. Today's longer runs suggest the team appears to have solved their tyre problems, it looks promising for Hamilton's championship challenge. Of course this weekend looks to be wet from tomorrow, but this is something to watch out for in the remaining races.

McLaren said in Belgium they are concentrating on 2014, however today they looked to have improved notably today. It appears that they are still interested in re-signing Alonso in the future as Sergio Perez hasn't exactly set the world on fire this season. Jenson Button made it into the top 5 in FP1, but lost ground to the Lotus's in FP2.

You can enjoy full coverage of this weekend's Korean Grand Prix Live online at Driving For Pleasure. With all my latest reports it's the place to be to stay right up to date with the latest news and on track action. Follow me on Twitter @TomWilkinsonF1 for Live coverage of all the on track action.