After a Friday of changeable conditions, we were given a first glimpse of how the British Grand Prix weekend is going.
The first two test sessions at the Silverstone circuit have provided us with some initial knowledge that allowed us to raise some concepts and questions after two weeks full of eye-catching functionality trends and unexpected adjustments to the grid order.
McLaren got off to a promising start at the British GP. Lando Norris, after fighting for victory in Austria and being forced to retire, will need revenge on Max Verstappen at Silverstone.
The Papaya team showed a lot of speed both on one lap and on the long runs. A one-two in FP2 with Norris and Oscar Piastri proved this first statement.
And on top of that, Norris’ race simulation on the medium tyre was ahead of Max Verstappen’s with an average advantage of a tenth of a second per lap.
Of course, this has to be taken with a pinch of salt because we don’t know the fuel load or the mapping of the engine with which the car has worked, but the feeling is that McLaren has a slight merit in functionality over Red Bull.
The Haas team, after a weekend in Austria, arrived at Silverstone with a great package of upgrades: new floor bodywork, floor fences, ground edge, sidepod intakes, engine cover, mirror mount and rear fender.
A total of seven adjustments were made to the old car, and the team sought to maintain maximum speed and aerodynamic efficiency.
A package that has already paid off with a fourth position for Nico Hülkenberg and a positive feeling for the team in terms of race time, Oliver Bearman helped on the long runs in FP1 on the hard tyre and gave intelligent feedback for the American. team, while the German tested the medium tyres and later the soft tyres in FP2.
Ferrari is one of the few teams that did not make any changes to its car for Silverstone.
And the Italians will have to continue evolving their car because lately they are one step behind Mercedes and two steps behind Red Bull and McLaren. The numbers don’t lie.
In the fast sector 2 of hairpin turns, the SF24 continues to suffer. Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc drove to different specifications.
The Spanish with the aero pre-Barcelona edition while Leclerc used the new specification brought in Spain and that did give the expected results.
FP1 was a strangely strong consultation for Aston Martin. Fernando Alonso and Lance Stroll looked much more comfortable than in the last two weekends with the AMR24.
Speaking to the Spanish program DAZN, Aston Martin ambassador and former F1 driver Pedro de los Angeles Rosa confessed that Alonso was happier with the car’s performance, but worried about the overheating of the tires once he reached Sector 3.
This will be something that all teams will take into account in qualifying to optimise their lap times.
In terms of race simulations, Aston Martin is once again close to Haas and Alpine. The three are less than a tenth of a second per lap behind. At the home GP for everyone in the team, this is the most productive situation to come back in. in a positive trend.
The risk of rain this weekend will be constant. FP2 ended with a light rain in the final minutes. And the weather forecast also maintains the option of rain and especially on Sunday.
On a weekend that already promises to be exciting in itself, the rain may be just one more detail to bring the display to the point and further combine the entire grid.
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