Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen both felt they lacked grip and are not expected to challenge for the lead at the Barcelona-Catalunya Grand Prix.
Hamilton missed the first practice because Ferrari had chosen one of four practice sessions in which the rookie had to run in one of his cars, and he finished ninth in the second, almost a second behind team-mate Charles Leclerc in fourth.
Ferrari brought the biggest upgrade package to Spain, but Hamilton finished 1.2 seconds behind leaders Lando Norris and George Russell.
“Charles has two sessions and is four tenths behind the McLarens and Mercedes. Clearly we still have a significant gap,” said Hamilton.
“It was unusual in that the majority of the drivers who missed the first session (maybe not Lando) were much further away than their team-mates in the second session.
“And it had the lowest grip of any car of this generation. And it’s so hot that the tires can only last one lap. Going into second practice and only going for two laps is tricky. I’m not sure what I’m going to do with the car. Hopefully tomorrow will be a better day.”
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Ferrari’s Lewis Hamilton hopes to be more competitive at the front of the grid for Saturday’s qualifying.
Verstappen drove in both practice sessions, but the Red Bull was noticeably less reliable than the McLaren and Mercedes, finishing the day almost nine tenths behind Norris. Sky Sports F1Martin Brundle from trackside.
Verstappen said the team had “a lot of work to do” and would “definitely” not challenge for a front row spot in Saturday’s 3pm live qualifying. Sky Sports F1.
“We’re losing at high speeds, low speeds, medium speeds. It’s almost everywhere. We lack grip, feel of the car, lack of balance all day long. That’s something we’ll work on,” he said.
“Nothing felt good, but I felt like no one had any grip. Every time I followed people, I had no grip. The car was literally drifting and the tires weren’t giving any grip at all.
“We struggled with balance more than the top players, but no player had good balance.”
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Isack Hadjar and Sergio Perez almost collided with each other during the second practice in Barcelona.
Norris: I didn’t feel very good.
After two difficult rounds in Montreal and Monaco, McLaren returned to Miami form and won the sprint while Norris came close to winning the Grand Prix.
Norris has failed to score points in the last two rounds due to lack of reliability, but the McLaren cars are also more competitive on the more conventional and flowing Barcelona-Catalunya circuit.
“It’s a lot faster, so we’re playing with the car in a very different way than we’ve been in the last few weeks and it seems to be in a better place,” he said.
“I think it’s a reasonable Friday. There’s still a lot of room for improvement. I wasn’t feeling amazing or happy. It’s hot so I don’t think anyone will be that happy. The wind and conditions make it difficult. It seems to be working better than the last few weeks, which is a good sign.”
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Kimi Antonelli was left frustrated after being interrupted by Oscar Piastri during the second practice session in Spain.
Oscar Piastri, who came third in the second practice, added: “The important thing now is to sustain this momentum into tomorrow. Early signs are encouraging, but there is still much to learn and much more progress to be made.
“We will continue to work hard to see what more we can extract from the night ahead of the qualifiers.”
Kimi Antonelli was another driver who watched first practice from the sidelines and was about half a second off the pace in what appeared to be the most demanding practice session since the early rounds of the season.
Antonelli, who is 66 points ahead of Hamilton and 68 ahead of Russell in the Drivers’ Championship, believes it “won’t be easy” to take pole this weekend and make it six wins in a row.
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On The F1 Show podcast, Craig Slater and David Croft discuss George Russell’s recent bad luck, but say he needs to step up his performance to get back into the fight with Kimi Antonelli.
“It was a little tricky (on one lap). The windows are too small. The tires were quite overheated. It was just trying to find the best balance,” the teenager said.
“Overall, there is still quite a bit of work to be done, but I am confident ahead of tomorrow. I am positive because the long-term is good. I am looking forward to the changes we will make in the future.”
Sky Sports F1 Barcelona-Catalunya GP Schedule
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Ahead of this weekend’s Barcelona-Catalunya Grand Prix, we take a look back at some of the most dramatic moments from previous races at the circuit.
Saturday, June 13th
9 AM: F3 Sprint
11:15 a.m.: Barcelona-Catalunya GP practice 3 (session starts at 11:30 a.m.)
1:10 PM: F2 Sprint*
2.15pm: Barcelona-Catalunya GP qualifying build-up*
3pm: Barcelona-Catalunya GP Qualifying*
5 p.m.: Ted’s Qualifying Notes
Sunday, June 14th
7:35 AM: F3 Feature Race
9:05 a.m.: Porsche Supercup
10:20 AM: F2 Feature Race
12.30pm: Barcelona-Catalunya GP build-up: Sunday Grand Prix*
2 p.m.: Barcelona-Catalonia Grand Prix*
4pm: Barcelona-Catalunya GP reaction: Checkered flag
5 p.m.: Ted’s Notes
*Applies to Sky Sports main event as well
Formula 1 will be broadcast live on Sky Sports F1 in Spain for the Barcelona-Catalunya Grand Prix. Sunday’s race starts at 2 p.m. Stream Sky Sports NOW – No Commitment, Cancel Anytime
