LANDO NORRIS BEGINS BRITISH GP WEEKEND IN PROMISING FORM, TOPPING PRACTICE

McLaren’s Lando Norris began the British Grand Prix weekend in strong form, finishing fastest in both practice sessions on Friday.

Though rain fell at various points throughout the day, both FP1 and FP2 were largely run on slick tyres and at the end of the second session it was a McLaren one-two, with Oscar Piastri around a third of a second adrift of his team-mate.

Max Verstappen, who finished fourth in FP1, did not make the most of his qualifying simulation in the afternoon session, however, so likely has more to deliver from his Red Bull. He ended up seventh in FP2, nearly 0.7sec slower than Norris. Sergio Perez was the lead Red Bull, 0.434sec off Norris and the fastest non-McLaren driver.

Norris, who has been Verstappen’s closest challenger since the Miami Grand Prix at the start of May, is likely to again be Verstappen’s biggest rival at Silverstone this weekend, in a boost to the home fans.

Mercedes, who have two British drivers, have been in improved in the last few rounds, however Lewis Hamilton only managed sixth and George Russell – last week’s winner in Austria – 10th, albeit less than a tenth slower than Hamilton.

British Grand Prix Friday practice, as it happened

05:17 PM BST

That is it from us today

We will be back from Silverstone tomorrow for qualifying from around 2pm, with the session beginning at 3pm BST. Could be a few showers around and we could have a British pole-sitter so it will not be one to miss.

05:03 PM BST

That is encouraging for McLaren...

0.434sec to the fastest non-McLaren runner. Max Verstappen failed to get the most from his qualifying simulation though so will likely be in the mix and is out of position today. That said, stringing it together is part of getting pole and winning the race and he didn’t really manage that today.

05:01 PM BST

A few cars went out on the intermediates at the end

Indeed, a few of them are still circulating as they return to the pits. I think it is most likely because these conditions could return tomorrow or on Sunday and it’s hardly torrential.

05:00 PM BST

FP2 ends - Norris completes practice double

NOR 1:26.549
PIA +0.331
PER +0.434
HUL +0.441
LEC +0.601
HAM +0.653
VER +0.684
SAI +0.700
STR +0.725
RUS +0.745
ALO +0.823
BOT +0.832
ALB +1.096
GAS +1.183
OCO +1.194
TSU +1.196
SAR +1.260
ZHO +1.264
RIC +1.367
MAG +1.573

04:56 PM BST

FP2 - The rain is not affecting Hamilton

“The track is fine, I’m just slow,” he says. Just under five minutes on the clock as the Mercedes is wheeled back into the garage.

04:54 PM BST

FP2 - It is now raining steadily

So the order as it is will be how it ends.

04:52 PM BST

FP2 - A mixture of soft and medium tyres at the moment

Not sure if any of them are going for quick laps. Verstappen has just lined himself up to launch across the line to start his next lap, so perhaps he is... though he is on the medium tyres.

Having said that, he is nearly four seconds off after two sectors... so no is the answer.

04:46 PM BST

FP2 - Leclerc getting a bit lairy at turn seven

A small tankslapper, if such a thing exists. He carries on and is currently in fifth place.

04:43 PM BST

FP2 - Current top 10

NOR 1:26.549
PIA +0.331
PER +0.434
HUL +0.441
LEC +0.601
HAM +0.653
VER +0.784
SAI +0.700
STR +0.725
RUS +0.745

Gaps opening up a bit more than FP1, though that can partly be attributed to McLaren and Norris in particular being so far ahead.

04:41 PM BST

FP2 - A bit of rain on the way?

Apparently in 12 minutes, so just before the end of the session.

04:38 PM BST

FP2 - Contrasting times for the other Haas of Kevin Magnussen

He is in 20th but that said, he has yet to set a proper lap on the soft tyres. He does not improve his position when he crosses the line, mostly due to running very wide at Stowe.

04:35 PM BST

FP2 - Hulkenberg’s lap has stood the test of time

He retains his place in third, 0.441sec off Norris. Trying to work out how good some of these laps are. I think Norris’s is pretty handy. Perez pops up into third to become the lead Red Bull, 0.434sec off Norris.

04:31 PM BST

FP2 - Norris looks like he’s about to go fastest

And indeed he does, a 1:26.549 with the fastest first, second and final sectors. That puts him 0.331sec ahead of team-mate Piastri. Verstappen, meanwhile, gets a bit out of shape heading onto the Hangar Straight whilst giving it full gas. That ruins his attempt and he is down in sixth now as he comes into the pits, nearly 0.7sec slower than Norris.

04:29 PM BST

FP2 - Some decent times on the soft tyres now

Piastri is fastest with a 1:26.880 and Nico Hulkenberg in the Haas is second, just 0.110sec slower. Leclerc third, 0.270sec off Piastri. Perez still lingering down in 16th though this is his first run on the softs.

04:24 PM BST

FP2 - Alonso with a decent middle sector, too

Roughly on the pace of Verstappen, though Bottas has just gone fastest in S1.

Alonso crosses the line 0.153sec down on the Red Bull driver and in second. A little more encouragement for Aston Martin? Perhaps.

04:22 PM BST

FP2 - 39 mins to go

Not many other drivers of significance have put on the soft tyres yet. Fernando Alonso is the highest runner below Verstappen to do so and he is in 10th. Let’s see what he can do now...

He’s 0.108sec up on Verstappen after one sector, so that is promising but the key is holding it together for the final two...

04:18 PM BST

FP2 - Verstappen storms to the top

Well, he moves himself further ahead, I should say. He is now 0.851sec ahead of second-placed Leclerc, but Verstappen is the first of any driver to bolt on the soft tyres.

Sainz is on a decent lap and should improve, albeit on the mediums. He goes second, but half a second down on Verstappen.

04:15 PM BST

FP2 - 15 mins go

So here is the current top 10:

VER 1:27.831
LEC +0.253
HAM +0.270
SAI +0.270
NOR +0.326
RUS +0.349
PIA +0.538
TSU +0.758
PER +0.791
ALO +0.863

04:13 PM BST

FP2 - Leclerc still struggling for grip

He gets a bit of oversteer at the Loop and then spends the Wellington Straight weaving to get some heat into his tyres.

04:10 PM BST

FP2 - Leclerc has a twitch heading onto the Hangar Straight

He runs wide but carries on without any issue. Hamilton has popped up into second, 0.270sec off Verstappen’s early pace.

04:05 PM BST

FP2 - Leclerc with the early pace

Though he is then beaten by Norris and then Verstappen before Russell gets in there. All of those on the medium tyres so far, as are most of the field.

04:03 PM BST

FP2 - 57 mins remain

All but two of the cars on track at the moment, Perez and Magnussen. Piastri’s hydraulic issue appears to have been solved.

04:00 PM BST

GREEN LIGHT: FP2 begins

As usual, it’s an hour long and we should see plenty of running.

03:59 PM BST

We should get a better idea of the one-lap pace from the teams in this session

As is usually the case on the conventional weekends. A reminder that Sergio Perez, Kevin Magnussen, Pierre Gasly and Logan Sargeant taking part this weekend for the first time as the “junior” drivers step back for the rest of the weekend. The session starts in less than a minute.

03:47 PM BST

Weather update

It is currently overcast but dry at Silverstone, having been pretty wet for the F3 session earlier in the day. There is likely to be rain not long after the session finishes and showers are still possible for qualifying and the race, more likely for the latter currently, according to the Met Office.

03:43 PM BST

News: Gasly to start from the back of the grid on Sunday

He has taken a host of new elements which warrants something like a 50-place grid penalty. Not impossible that he doesn’t start last but realistically he will do, unless we see any pit-lane starters.

Earlier in the season it would not have been much of a penalty because of how slow Alpine were. They have, in the past couple of months, got their act together and Gasly had four top-10 finishes in a row before now.

03:36 PM BST

Brown was also quite punch on the topic of the Red Bull leadership

Particularly in their response to the Norris/Verstappen clash in Austria last weekend, as you might expect. It repeats what team principal Andrea Stella said immediately after the race. My colleague Tom Cary will have more on that later today but here’s a brief snippet.

Disappointed in such a great team like Red Bull that the leadership almost encourages it because you listen on the radio what was said, we all have a responsibility on the pit wall to tell our drivers the dos and don’ts and what’s going on in the race.

03:30 PM BST

Zak Brown thinks McLaren have a shot this weekend

I think we’re going to be very competitive this weekend, so we just want to be laser-focused on that [and not Verstappen vs Norris]. Of course, everyone loves a good battle but it wasn’t long ago that Mercedes and Red Bull were having an epic battle. At the end of the day we want Lando and Oscar but to [focus] on the job at hand.

03:26 PM BST

First practice recap

McLaren’s Lando Norris was fastest in first practice for this weekend’s British Grand Prix ahead of Aston Martin’s Lance Stroll.

Norris has been Max Verstappen’s closest competitor in recent races and underlined McLaren’s potential this weekend with a time of 1:27.420sec on the soft tyre.

Verstappen, the championship leader, was fourth although he did not set a time of the faster compound of tyres. Norris’s team-mate Oscar Piastri was third, just over two-tenths off the pace.

RB’s Yuki Tsunoda spun out earlier in the session on a cold track and finished last.

01:39 PM BST

We will be back about 3.30pm for FP2

That starts at 4pm. Fingers crossed that McLaren can get Piastri’s car up and running again.

01:38 PM BST

FP1 ends - Classification with Norris fastest

NOR 1:32.420
STR +0.134
PIA +0.211
VER +0.309
RUS +0.318
ALO +0.374
HAM +0.438
LEC +0.483
SAI +0.505
OCO +0.554
HUL +0.662
BOT +0.834
RIC +1.057
BEA +1.116
ZHO +1.170
ALB +1.229
DOO +1.315
COL +1.658
HAD +1.850
TSU +2.444

01:30 PM BST

FP1 - Into the final few moments

Jack Doohan is looking at improving from his 17th place in the Alpine. Actually he isn’t as he is on a long-run on the hard tyres.

01:26 PM BST

FP1 - Stroll and Leclerc nearly come together

They don’t in the end, thankfully, but this is a high-speed track and in these busy sessions there is always the risk of that with cars on different programs and in/hot/out/recharge laps.

Norris still leads the way from Stroll and I very much doubt that the order will change in the final few minutes.

01:23 PM BST

FP1 - Trouble for Piastri

“I think I have a hydraulic problem,” he says as he goes down the final sector. He crawls back to the pit lane and there are seven minutes remaining in the session. Not a disaster for track time but he will be crossing is fingers that McLaren can get this sorted for FP2 later in the day.

01:20 PM BST

FP1 - Verstappen says it’s drizzling out there

It is a little darker than it was at the start of the session. 10 minutes remain.

Norris leads Stroll, Piastri, Verstappen, Russell and Alonso. Some encouragement for Aston Martin in a difficult season? Or just unrepresentative glory runs in their home race? We will have to wait and find out.

01:19 PM BST

FP1 - Lando Norris up to fastest

Stroll on a good lap, too and could threaten it with a good final sector. Both on soft tyres. Stroll cannot quite put in a lap fast enough to dislodge him, 0.134sec off the McLaren man.

01:14 PM BST

FP1 - Norris on the soft tyres now

He goes fourth, just over two-tenths slower than team-mate Piastri. Piastri could be an outside bet for the win here this weekend.

01:13 PM BST

FP1 – Into the final 20 mins

And Oscar Piastri moves fastest in the McLaren by just under a tenth of a second. A second separates the top 12 now. That is the way things have been going in F1 recently and that is good. Hopefully that can be carried through until qualifying though the times do tend to diverge as we progress through the sessions.

Here’s the top 10:

PIA 1:27.631
VER +0.098
RUS +0.107
HAM +0.227
LEC +0.272
SAI +0.294
OCO +0.399
HUL +0.451
BOT +0.623
STR +0.795

Piastri on the soft tyre, though when most others in the top 10 were on the medium tyres.

01:09 PM BST

FP1 - 21 mins remain

It’s pretty close at the top with under two-tenths separating leader Verstappen from fourth-placed man Sainz in the Ferrari and Hamilton just over a tenth behind him – in fifth.

01:05 PM BST

FP1 - Scrap that, Verstappen has just moved fastest

A 1:27.764sec, just 0.161sec ahead of Sainz, albeit on the medium tyres as plenty of the field are switching to a softer compound. Momentarily after, Russell goes just a hundredth of a second slower than Verstappen and into second.

01:04 PM BST

FP1 - Full order at the half-way stage

12:59 PM BST

FP1 - 32 mins remain

Good lap from Sainz and it puts him first overall, just over a tenth faster than Hamilton. A particularly good first sector.

Here’s the top six:

SAI 1:27.925
HAM +0.118
RUS +0.121
VER +0.445
PIA +0.544
ALO +0.633

12:55 PM BST

FP1 - Hamilton now fastest

Not much in it between him and team-mate Russell: just 0.003sec.

12:55 PM BST

FP1 - Piastri improves to third

0.423sec off Russell’s currently best time of 1:28.046. Most of these times were set on the hard tyres, with a few on the medium and just one (Bearman) on the softs.

12:54 PM BST

FP1 - A bit squirrelly in the final few corners for Bearman

But he crosses the line in fifth, half a second down on Russell, who just improved further with a 1:28.046.

12:52 PM BST

FP1 - Norris sets his first proper lap

Three seconds down on Russell in the lead. He had a moment in turn five on his previous lap. Grip is still pretty low out there. Bearman goes fastest in the first sector, albeit on a set of soft tyres.

12:50 PM BST

FP1 - Verstappen on a good lap

Fastest first sector and a good middle sector before he crosses the line... 0.214sec down on Russell. Not sure if he bailed out on the final sector but he lost a lot of time there. Still good enough for second, though.

12:48 PM BST

FP1 - The session has resumed

Here we go again...

12:46 PM BST

Watch: Tsunoda in the gravel

12:44 PM BST

FP1 - Tsunoda’s RB is on the recovery crane

So I think we will get a restart promptly with a little under 45 minutes left on the clock.

12:42 PM BST

FP1 - Order under the red flag

RUS
HAM +0.147
VER +0.161
LEC +0.169
PIA +0.600
TSU +0.6976
SAI +1.250
RIC +1.268
OCO +1.659
BEA +2.156
BOT +2.295
ALO +2.305
DOO +2.384
HUL +2.581
ZHO +3.863
HAD +32.445

Nobody else has set a proper lap time. Mind you, neither has Hadjar with that. 47 mins remain on the clock.

12:40 PM BST

FP1 - RED FLAG

Tsunoda lost it in the mid-corner, the rear steps out and straight into the gravel he goes. The car is beached and that is the end of his session.

12:39 PM BST

FP1 - Bearman improves his lap time

He moves into P12 with a 1:32.0. Hamilton currently atop the timesheets 0.8sec ahead of Tsunoda in the RB. Hopefully Mercedes can maintain their competitiveness this weekend. Not sure it’ll be enough to put him in contention for victory. But that would be something.

Yellow flags in sector two and we have Yuki Tsunoda in the gravel trap on the outside of Luffield which is a bit of an odd place. It’s before the throttle goes down on exit so not sure what happened.

It’s a Red Flag.

12:35 PM BST

FP1 - Bearman the first driver to set a time

A 1:41.245 though that is comfortably beaten by Hamilton and then Leclerc and Bottas. Not a representative time for Bearman, that.

Yellow flags in sector two - not sure why. Cannot see that anyone has stopped on the track but Isack Hadjar is going slowly, though that appears to be to let traffic through.

12:33 PM BST

FP1 - Problems for Stroll

The Aston Martin driver complains of a long brake pedal and then says he has a brake-by-wire failure as he returns to the pits.

12:32 PM BST

FP1 - Norris given a warning

Not for his driving but by his race engineer who says him to be wary about the grip, or lack of it. Norris has a couple of aero rakes on the front of his car.

12:31 PM BST

FP1 begins! Bearman is out there quite early

As predicted, on the slicks. A chance of rain during this session, however. Bottas and Stroll out on the medium tyres.

12:30 PM BST

Another big moment for Bearman

He will drive the Haas in this FP1 session. A few other young/up-and-coming junior drivers taking part too including Jack Doohan for Alpine, Isack Hadjar for Red Bull and Franco Colapinto for Williams.

12:27 PM BST

We are nearly ready to get going

No rain and whilst not exactly warm, it’s not too bad out there given what we experienced earlier this morning.

12:17 PM BST

A slightly different livery for Red Bull this weekend

It has more red on it. Why? A bit of publicity and marketing, I guess – like plenty of things in this sport.

12:10 PM BST

A bit more from Bearman...

12:02 PM BST

Next year there will be another Briton on the grid

Oliver Bearman, who made a debut for Ferrari in Saudi Arabia as a stand-in for Carlos Sainz. Bearman has now signed for Haas for 2025 and Tom Cary sat down with him earlier this week to talk through his thoughts and ambitions for his F1 career.

Haas will be a decent place for him to start as it stands. They are more competitive this season than they have been at various points in the last five years.

11:48 AM BST

Right, just over 35 minutes to go until FP1 begins

I think we will be running on slicks, the track looks pretty dry from where I can see from just above the pitlane and I do not think the rain has continued.

11:40 AM BST

News: Verstappen braced for British GP boos as Norris admits he ‘overreacted’

Max Verstappen says he is unfazed about the prospect of being booed at this weekend’s British Grand Prix as he and Lando Norris have “cleared” the air following their collision in Austria last Sunday and that is the “only thing he is concerned about”.
Red Bull’s three-time world champion has been on the receiving end of booing from the Silverstone crowds in the past, mostly stemming from his fierce 2021 title battle with Lewis Hamilton.

Read more on that story here.

11:32 AM BST

‘Max Verstappen’s ruthless side is back and F1 fans should be delighted’

There has been a narrative building over the last couple of seasons that Verstappen has changed. That ‘Mad Max’ has somehow been retired, and a new, mature version – Verstappen 2.0 if you will – has taken his place. The truth is, Verstappen is the same as he always was. He is an aggressive, highly-skilled racing driver, who takes absolutely no prisoners on track. He has been known to step over the line, although to be honest the ‘Mad Max’ moniker and certainly the ‘Crashtappen’ nickname, have been redundant for a while.

Read more from Tom Cary here.

11:27 AM BST

F1 team standings

Aston Martin, whose HQ is only just across the road from this track, are having a difficult season after an excellent one last year. Haas in impressive form, really. They will be hunting down RB.

11:18 AM BST

Current driver standings – top 10

Verstappen leads the way by 81 points which is a pretty healthy lead at any stage of the season. Would have been fewer had Norris finished the Austrian Grand Prix last week. Tsunoda having a good season so far.

11:16 AM BST

Session timings for this weekend

Friday, July 5

FP1 12.30pm BST

FP2 4pm

Saturday, July 6

FP3 11.30am

Qualifying 3pm

Sunday, July 7

British Grand Prix 3pm

11:08 AM BST

It was a bit damp earlier this morning

The weather was never torrential, but the fine rain that soaks you right through. Heavy drizzle? Something like that...

...but it has since cleared up a little, though it is still fairly grey.

10:40 AM BST

Good morning F1 fans

Welcome to our live coverage for Friday practice at the 2024 British Grand Prix. This is my first race back since April’s Chinese Grand Prix, a race which Max Verstappen won in his Red Bull by 13.7sec over Lando Norris. Since then Verstappen has “only” won three of the six rounds, with wins by Norris in Miami, Charles Leclerc in Monaco and, last week, George Russell in Austria.

Of course, Verstappen still has a vice-like grip on the championship, leading Norris by more than 80 points but given the dominance we experienced in the couple of years before that, this is a welcome change. We turn up to every race weekend with the possibility that not only will Verstappen be challenged, he might not win the race. At last some competition.

McLaren have emerged as the main challengers to Red Bull (well, at least to one of them) whilst Ferrari have dropped back. Mercedes, though, have found some pace and optimism that has put them in the mix somewhere, too. This is all very welcome.

And what about his chances at Silverstone this weekend? Well, pretty good you would say but remember this is the track last year that McLaren confirmed that their mid-season upgrades were working superbly with Norris and team-mate Oscar Piastri giving the Dutchman a run for his money. McLaren are even stronger this year and you’d say Norris has a pretty good chance of becoming another British winner of the British Grand Prix.

That said, the weather could play a role in the outcome of the weekend. Today so far has generally been pretty soggy. Although conditions will be drier tomorrow and Sunday, there is still the opportunity for some showers during qualifying and the race

In any case, we will take you through first practice at 12.30pm and then FP2 which begins at 4pm BST.

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2024-07-05T13:01:59Z dg43tfdfdgfd