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Spanish Grand Prix: Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc disagree after early collision in Barcelona | F1 News

On: June 23, 2024 By: admin

Carlos Sainz said Charles Leclerc “complains too many times” after his Ferrari team-mate criticised the Spaniard for overtaking him early in the Spanish Grand Prix.

Sainz passed Leclerc on the fourth lap in Barcelona on Sunday and the pair brushed wheels, with Leclerc later insisting the manoeuvre had caused costly damage to his car.

Sainz will leave the Italian outfit at the end of the 2024 season, to be replaced by Lewis Hamilton, and with the 29-year-old on the lookout for a new seat, Leclerc says he understands his colleague is “motivated to do something spectacular”.

But the Monegasque said Sainz should not have done it against him and that there will be “a discussion”, as the team-mates delivered an opposing assessment of the incident.

Sainz told Sky Sports F1’s Rachel Brookes: “Too many times after the race he [Leclerc] complains about something. Honestly, at this point of the season, I was on the attack.

“We were on a used soft tyre. I passed Charles… I don’t know if he made a mistake or was just managing a bit too much.

“I think I was trying to do what was required as a driver. He elected to manage more.”

Leclerc: I was probably not the right person to do that with

Leclerc and Sainz have been team-mates at Ferrari since 2021, with the pair largely experiencing a friendly relationship.

Leclerc, who finished fifth and Sainz sixth in a race won by Red Bull’s Max Verstappen ahead of McLaren’s Lando Norris, said: “It’s okay. We will have a discussion, obviously. I’m sure everything will be fine.

“We discussed beforehand that it was the part of the race where we had to manage the tyres as much as possible.

“Carlos took that opportunity to overtake, which is a shame as that put us on the back foot and damaged my front wing.

“It was a small damage but everything makes a difference. When you see how close we were at the end it’s a shame.

“He is motivated to do something spectacular but I was probably not the right person to do that with.”

Leclerc’s frustrations also stretched to Ferrari’s lack of speed, adding: “We tried everything.

“I don’t think we maximised our race as a team. We are missing pace but it is the way it is. We weren’t fast enough.”

Pundits’ view on Leclerc-Sainz clash

Sky Sports F1’s Karun Chandhok

“I think it was hard racing. I think it’s fine. It was on the edge but they got away with it.”

Sky Sports F1’s Damon Hill:

“They are both responsible for both cars in the race and that could have been two cars out. “

F1’s triple-header continues with the Austrian Grand Prix this coming week – with the Sprint format returning. Watch every session live on Sky Sports F1, with Sunday’s big race from 2pm.

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Spanish GP: Max Verstappen denies Lando Norris comeback charge for win as Lewis Hamilton makes podium return | F1 News

On: June 23, 2024 By: admin

Max Verstappen overcame the comeback challenge of a fast Lando Norris to pull off an impressive Spanish GP win and stretch his F1 world championship lead.

Left to regret a poor start which dropped him from pole position to third place coming out of the race’s first corner – in significant opening exchanges which saw Mercedes’ George Russell surge into the lead from fourth – Norris attempted to get back ahead into the lead through strategy as McLaren extended both of his pit stops compared with Verstappen and Red Bull.

But, despite relentlessly catching Verstappen in the closing stages of the race, Norris ultimately ran out of time and finished 2.2s behind at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya as the Red Bull driver hung on for his seventh win of an increasingly competitive season.

Lewis Hamilton finally ended his wait for a first podium in 2024 with a fine drive of his own to third.

Although he dropped behind his fast-starting team-mate at the start, Hamilton overtook Russell after the second stops with an eye-catching around-the-outside move on the sister Mercedes into Turn One.

Russell, who struggled on his second set of tyres when he went on to the hards while others, including Hamilton, took the softs, just finished ahead of fifth-placed Charles Leclerc, with Ferrari finishing over 20s off the race lead in a disappointing performance.

Carlos Sainz, who overtook Leclerc early on but was repassed later on, was sixth at his home race. Oscar Piastri was seventh in the second McLaren at the end of a disappointing weekend for the young Australian, with Sergio Perez only able to recover to eighth from 11th on the grid in the other Red Bull.

Alpine’s unexpectedly strong weekend ended with a much-needed double-points finish for the under-pressure Enstone team, with Pierre Gasly ninth and Esteban Ocon 10th.

More to follow…

F1’s triple-header continues with the Austrian Grand Prix this coming week – with the Sprint format returning at the Red Bull Ring. Watch every session live on Sky Sports F1, with Sunday’s big race at 2pm. Stream every F1 race and more with a NOW Sports Month Membership – No contract, cancel anytime

Lewis Hamilton pleased with ‘beautiful’ third for Spanish GP after qualifying breakthrough and now eyes win | F1 News

On: June 23, 2024 By: admin

Lewis Hamilton said Mercedes’ return to contending at the front of the F1 grid had been a “long time coming” after they locked out the second row at the Spanish Grand Prix and he delivered the best qualifying result of his disappointing season.

The seven-time world champion will start inside the top four for the first time in 15 races and is not ruling out what would be a first race win since December 2021.

Hamilton qualified in what he termed a “beautiful” third position, directly behind polesitter Lando Norris and second-placed Max Verstappen, for the long run down to the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya’s first corner of Sunday’s 2pm race.

He also out-qualified team-mate George Russell – who claimed pole last time out in Canada in the first significant example of a belated Mercedes renaissance – for just the second time this season. With Hamilton 0.002s faster than the younger Briton, they start a race in the top four together for the first time since last October’s Qatar Grand Prix.

“It has been a long time coming for us as a team,” an encouraged Hamilton told Sky Sports F1.

“For us to be in this position where we get a third and a fourth and are starting to be more consistent in that realm is huge.

“Really big huge thanks to everybody back in the factory because it really is down to everyone there who have put the extra hours in to bring upgrades, bring new parts, keep refreshing them.

“To be designing and really assisting in moving this car in the right direction. It is getting more and more enjoyable to drive as a race car.”

Hamilton, who had topped Q1 after a second run on new tyres and then finished second-quickest Q2, was within 0.2s of Verstappen and Norris after the first laps of the pole-deciding Q3 but the gap grew to 0.318s on the final run.

Still, the Briton reckons that Mercedes’ real deficit was actually half that amount had everything gone perfectly and is therefore remaining full optimism for a race when tyre wear and management is set to be key in deciding the outcome.

“We are not very far away. I think three tenths, I think the real gap is about a tenth and a half maybe,” he added.

“I think Max is particularly fast on long runs, I think their car is still ahead, as is probably Lando’s. However, I am going into tomorrow to try and win.

“We are in a beautiful spot. P3 is a good position to start with.

“I think the long run wasn’t looking bad so I hope that translates. I think the start needs to be a shake and bake with Lando maybe.

“I am just going to remain optimistic.”

Speaking in the earlier post-qualifying press conference, Hamilton did accept that fighting for the win “would be very difficult” but suggested the fact that Mercedes have both their cars in the top four could prove strategically advantageous in a race that is set to feature two pit stops per car.

Oscar Piastri, Norris’ McLaren team-mate, is ninth while an-out-of-form Perez starts 11th in the second Red Bull.

“There’s two of us, so hopefully we can apply pressure as a team to both of the cars ahead in order to maybe play out something in strategy and slowly climb up,” said Hamilton.

“I think it’s all about degradation and how you look after the tyres, so we won’t know until we get into that first run.”

Russell declares: We have the pace to fight for win

Russell, meanwhile, admitted the final three-tenths deficit to the front row was “probably a little but bigger than we expected” after the promise of the weekend’s earlier sessions.

“I think we believed (we could challenge for pole), the car has been feeling great, and historically we have gone well here in Barcelona,” he said.

“I think the gap to Lando and Max was probably a little bit bigger than we expected.

“I don’t think Lewis and I put the perfect lap together, we did good laps, but on a challenging track like this, you have to put the tyres in the right window and just find those last couple of tenths and that is what Lando managed to do and we didn’t.

“P3 and P4 is a really great place to fight.”

And on their victory prospects, Russell – whose quest to win from pole in Canada was undone by mistakes in changeable conditions, declared: “I think we do have the pace to fight with Max and Lando for victory.”

Sky Sports F1’s live Spanish GP schedule

Sunday June 23
7.45am: F1 Academy Race 2
9am: F3 Feature Race
10.30am: F2 Feature Race
12:30pm: Grand Prix Sunday: Spanish GP build-up
2pm: The SPANISH GRAND PRIX
4pm: Chequered Flag: Spanish GP reaction

Formula 1 heads back to Europe as the championship moves on to Barcelona for the Spanish Grand Prix and the start of a triple-header. Watch every session at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya this weekend, live on Sky Sports F1. Stream every F1 race and more with a NOW Sports Month Membership – No contract, cancel anytime

Spanish GP: Lando Norris aims to capitalise after Max Verstappen declares dominance ‘completely gone’ | F1 News

On: June 22, 2024 By: admin

Lando Norris is determined to grab the “opportunity” presented by his second career F1 pole position in Sunday’s Spanish Grand Prix after Max Verstappen declared Red Bull’s dominance to now be “completely gone”.

Norris will start from pole position ahead of championship leader Verstappen having produced what he described as the best-ever lap of his career in a blistering end to qualifying at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya on Saturday.

The Briton, who won his maiden Grand Prix in Miami last month, has finished in the top two at three of the past four events and starts from the head of the grid on a Sunday for the first time in nearly three years.

And although aware that the Barcelona polesitter can be vulnerable to attack owing to the long run down to the first corner, Norris is excited by what is to come in a 66-lap race that he believes any of the increasingly-close leading four teams could yet win.

“It’s probably one of the places you don’t want to start on pole, but it’s an opportunity for us to go out and try and win a race you know.

“We’ve not done loads of long running. We’ve done a bit and I think we were close, as it always has been.

“I think tomorrow is not like this car is way quicker. I think between Mercedes, ourselves, Red Bull, Ferrari, there’s eight cars that could have probably been on pole today and that have a chance of probably winning the race.

“So it’s about making the least mistakes, similar to today, and just trying to execute another good race that we normally do.”

Speaking to Sky Sports F1, Norris added: “The race pace between everyone is extremely close. I think it is interesting tomorrow to see what happens laps 10-20.”

Max: Red Bull dominance ‘completely gone’ – but ‘excited’ for victory tussle

While Verstappen may have missed out on pole by a miniscule margin of just 0.020s, the 12-month turnaround in fortunes for Red Bull at the fast, flowing Spanish circuit was still stark.

At last year’s race, Verstappen claimed pole by almost half a second. He then won on the Sunday by the best part of half a minute.

Red Bull had brought more upgrades to their 2024 car this weekend, whereas McLaren had not, and Verstappen said of the RB20’s pace: “I think it’s been OK, but not good enough, clearly.

“These kinds of tracks, I was hoping, of course, to be ahead. But the other teams are catching up. We’ve seen this already in the last few races, so it’s definitely a lot harder. We need to do everything perfect to be first. We just need to bring more performance to the car.”

He then more bluntly added: “We need to push on. We need to bring parts faster, better. I mean, we’ve had a very dominant car last year. That is very, like… I mean, it’s completely gone, naturally.

“And, yeah, we just need to really try and make a step ahead again.”

Not that the disappearance of their two-season advantage means to say that the Dutchman – who beat Norris and Mercedes’ George Russell to win in Canada despite not having the weekend’s fastest car – is anywhere near out of the equation to claim a seventh win of the campaign and increase his 56-point championship lead.

“I think it is just going to be exciting to see how we fare against them in race pace,” he told Sky Sports F1.

“When I look at my race pace, I think it is OK but nothing special compared to Mercedes or McLaren, Ferrari.

“I felt OK, but I didn’t really feel like there was a very strong pace compared to others.

“Also just trying to fine tune our balance as well.

“So, I think what we did going into qualifying will help for [the race]. I felt a bit draggy in qualifying with the wing that we had, it was quite big, but hopefully it will help a bit [the race].”

Can Hamilton and Russell work together?

On the second row, Lewis Hamilton and Russell line up together with both Mercedes drivers knowing it could be important to be ahead of one another to get strategic priority.

It’s a long run down to Turn One, so the Mercedes pair will be in the slipstream of Norris and Verstappen, with the two Ferraris right in behind for good measure.

Their long run pace throughout practice has been competitive and Russell is optimistic they can challenge for the win.

“I think strategically, the tyre degradation, you can do some things with the strategy, but if you have got one-tenth of pace in the car, that will always win out over strategy,” Russell told Sky Sports F1.

“For sure we will try something but we hope we have got the pace to fight with Max and Lando.

“I think we do have the pace to fight with Max and Lando for victory.”

Hamilton and Russell collided at the start of last year’s Qatar Grand Prix when both drivers sniffed a potential chance of victory.

They were free to race last time out in Canada, with Russell coming out on top, but they may need to work together to stand a chance of outfoxing McLaren and Red Bull.

“I think it would be very difficult. I think these two [Norris and Verstappen] will be very quick, but position is everything,” said Hamilton.

“Also there’s two of us, so hopefully we can apply pressure as a team to both of the cars ahead in order to maybe play out something in strategy and slowly climb up.

“I think it’s all about degradation and how you look after the tyres, so we won’t know until we get into that first run.”

Spanish GP Grid


Driver	Team
1) Lando Norris	McLaren
2) Max Verstappen	Red Bull
3) Lewis Hamilton	Mercedes
4) George Russell	Mercedes
5) Charles Leclerc	Ferrari
6) Carlos Sainz	Ferrari
7) Pierre Gasly	Alpine
8) Esteban Ocon	Alpine
9) Oscar Piastri	McLaren
10) Fernando Alonso	Aston Martin
11) Sergio Perez	Red Bull
12) Valtteri Bottas	Sauber
13) Nico Hulkenberg	Haas
14) Lance Stroll	Aston Martin
15) Zhou Guanyu	Sauber
16) Kevin Magnussen	Haas
17) Yuki Tsunoda	RB
18) Daniel Ricciardo	RB
19) Alex Albon	Williams
20) Logan Sargeant	Williams

Multiple pit stops to cause strategy chaos

The Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya is one of the toughest tracks on tyres due to the long and high-speed corners.

Most drivers went for a two-stopper last year, with a mixture of softs, mediums and hards being used.

A key difference will be rain is expected overnight so the track will be “green” and all the rubber that’s been laid down will be washed away, which, in theory, will increase tyre degradation.

Temperatures will also be cooler compared to how they have been so far, which will also affect how the tyres perform.

Normally, the drivers in the top 10 start on the mediums but the soft tyre has been holding up well and that extra grip off the line to get track position may tempt some front-runners to start on the soft.

Both Ferrari drivers have saved a new set of softs for the race, so Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz in fifth and sixth have that card to use at some point.

The undercut is very powerful and a key number to remember is you lose around 23 seconds when making a pit stop during green flag conditions.

There hasn’t been a Safety Car or Virtual Safety Car at the Spanish Grand Prix since 2021, but pitting under those conditions means you only lose approximately 14 seconds, and we have already seen this year how a SC or VSC can turn a read on its head.

This is where Mercedes or Ferrari, with two cars towards the front, may opt to run a driver long and gamble on a timely Safety Car intervention.

We thought this track would tell us the pecking order in F1 and it really looks like the field has converged, which sets us up for a brilliant race on Sunday.

Sky Sports F1’s live Spanish GP schedule

Spanish GP: Lando Norris reveals how McLaren fire changed preparations before ‘perfect’ pole lap | F1 News

On: June 22, 2024 By: admin

Lando Norris says his pole position lap for the Spanish Grand Prix was a “work of art” after he came out on top in a thrilling qualifying, just hours after a fire at McLaren’s hospitality.

Norris pipped Max Verstappen by 0.020s to claim the second pole position of his F1 career, with both drivers showing their class in an extremely competitive weekend at the front of the field.

Verstappen benefitted from a slipstream as Red Bull team-mate Sergio Perez helped him but Norris tactically got a tow from Alpine’s Esteban Ocon on his last Q3 lap.

“We planned for it (the tow from Esteban Ocon). I knew Max was going to do it. Oscar and I lost out on a one-two in Imola Qualifying because of the slipstream that Max did,” Norris told Sky Sports F1.

“It has been clear all weekend that we needed to get a slipstream so we planned to get a slipstream. It was quite simple.

“It was in the plan the whole time. It didn’t gain me as much as you think, it gained me maybe five or six hundredths. Max also got a slipstream so I didn’t gain more on him because of that.

“It was just that my lap was beautiful. Today felt like a work of art. Every corner just flowed and my body moved in the right way.

“You know when you don’t have to think about it. It is the one lap I didn’t think and things just flowed perfectly.”

Norris’ only previous pole came in September 2021 at the Russian Grand Prix and he earned his first win last month in Miami.

The 24-year-old narrowly missed out on pole in Imola and Montreal by less than a tenth, but was on the right side of the line this time around with a brilliant lap.

“I am disappointed that I am only two hundredths ahead on pole from Max because it felt like I should be even more,” continued Norris.

“But then I think that makes it sweeter because, for me to have done such a perfect lap, and have still beaten Max shows that they were clearly quicker all day today and had the quicker car but we still managed to beat them, so that is a nice thing.

“You are just more in your subconscious mind. You are just looking where you are going and letting your hands do the rest.

“I am not good at describing it like (Lewis and Senna) that I leave my body or my mind. I have got no idea but in any sport, that is the level you have got to be at where things just flow.

“You know what to do so you don’t have to consciously think about it which is what felt so good. I am happy I found that because it has been a long, long time since I have been in that rhythm.

“All weekend I have been able to be more in that state, more in the flow, and it has paid off.”

How McLaren fire impacted Norris

Earlier on Saturday, ahead of final practice, McLaren’s hospitality suite caught fire and the team were forced to evacuate the building.

A team member was sent to hospital for precautionary checks, but was discharged later on Saturday. The hospitality can’t be used for the rest of the weekend in Barcelona.

Norris and Oscar Piastri were not able to use their drivers’ rooms but the British driver says he has “no real issues”, other than not being able to relax by himself.

“The best thing is everyone is safe and doing well. That’s the best news. A scare for the whole team and never a nice thing,” said Norris.

“It was just more of a stressful day than I would have liked. I lost my shoes but that was as bad as it got for me.

“Just different. I’ve not been in my normal room, so wasn’t able to relax as much as I normally do. A lot of the teams have been very nice to us to help out. A shame we can’t use it for the rest of the weekend.”

Sky Sports F1’s live Spanish GP schedule

Spanish GP Qualifying Timesheet


Driver	Team	Time
1) George Russell	Mercedes	1:12.000
2) Max Verstappen	Red Bull	+0.000
3) Lando Norris	McLaren	+0.021
4) Oscar Piastri	McLaren	+0.103
5) Daniel Ricciardo	RB	+0.178
6) Fernando Alonso	Aston Martin	+0.228
7) Lewis Hamilton	Mercedes	+0.280
8) Yuki Tsunoda	RB	+0.414
9) Lance Stroll	Aston Martin	+0.701
10) Alex Albon	Williams	+0.796
Knocked out in Q2
11) Charles Leclerc	Ferrari	1:12.691
12) Carlos Sainz	Ferrari	1:12.728
13) Logan Sargeant	Williams	1:12.736
14) Kevin Magnussen	Haas	1:12.916
15) Pierre Gasly	Alpine	1:12.940
Knocked out in Q1
16) Sergio Perez	Red Bull	1:13.326
17) Valtteri Bottas	Sauber	1:13.366
18) Esteban Ocon	Alpine	1:13.435
19) Nico Hulkenberg	Haas	1:13.978
20) Zhou Guanyu	Sauber	1:14.292

Spanish GP Qualifying: Lando Norris produces last-gasp pole lap to beat Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton | F1 News

On: June 22, 2024 By: admin

Lando Norris produced a sensational final lap to defeat Max Verstappen and secure just his second Formula 1 pole position in a thrillingly competitive Spanish GP qualifying.

In a session that underlined McLaren’s growing strength and the ever-increasing competition at the front of F1 after two years of Verstappen-Red Bull dominance, Norris delivered under pressure when it mattered around the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya with a final lap of 1:11.383.

Verstappen had held provisional pole after the first Q3 laps and improved by two tenths more on his final attempt, but Norris made the difference seconds later by a mere 0.020s.

Mercedes will start from a second-row lockout after their own improvement continued in a competitive hour when they were a factor throughout.

For just the second time in 10 races this season, Lewis Hamilton out-qualified team-mate George Russell and will start a season-best third.

Mercedes outpaced Ferrari, with Charles Leclerc and home favourite Carlos Sainz to start fifth and sixth respectively.

Incredibly, just 0.035s separated those four cars.

Pierre Gasly was a stunning sixth on a morale-boosting weekend for Alpine, which also saw Esteban Ocon make Q3 in ninth.

Sergio Perez, who gave team-mate Verstappen a tow on his final lap, was only eighth and will drop to 11th on Sunday’s grid owing to a three-place penalty carried over from Canada.

More to follow…

Sky Sports F1’s live Spanish GP schedule

Spanish GP: Carlos Sainz edges out Lando Norris and Charles Leclerc ahead of qualifying | F1 News

On: June 22, 2024 By: admin

Carlos Sainz edged out Lando Norris in another tight practice session ahead of qualifying for the Spanish Grand Prix.

The top four were split by less than one tenth of a second with Charles Leclerc in third and Max Verstappen in fourth but the session ended with some drama at the end, when Leclerc made contact with Norris.

Leclerc was on a fast lap and appeared to be unhappy about being impeded by Norris, so slowed down and moved left, making small contact with the McLaren driver.

Just moments later Leclerc, Verstappen and Sainz all nearly tangled, with the first Leclerc-Norris incident under investigation by the stewards.

Mercedes’ George Russell and Lewis Hamilton were in fifth and sixth but both drivers are also on the fringe of being in the hunt for pole in qualifying, which is at 3pm on Sky Sports F1 and Sky Sports Main Event.

Ahead of final practice, a fire broke out at McLaren’s hospitality and Sky Sports News understands that at least two fire staff personnel were treated for smoke inhalation but their condition is not thought to be serious.

Narrow margins at the front

All weekend, there has been little to separate Ferrari, McLaren, Red Bull and Mercedes, even though the gaps were expected to increase at the front due to the track layout.

Sainz was 0.030s ahead of Norris on the last soft tyre runs in final practice, with Leclerc only 0.037s behind his Ferrari team-mate.

Verstappen, who has a fourth power unit in his car this weekend, so is on the verge of needing a grid penalty for using a fifth engine, was 0.074s behind Sainz but has shown he can produce when it matters most this year.

Russell set the pace in the first half of the session but dropped to fifth at 0.174s behind, with Hamilton in sixth after not putting a clean lap together.

Sergio Perez has a three-grid place penalty for Sunday’s race, after driving back to the pits last time out in Canada with a damaged rear wing, and could be starting in the midfield as he’s been lacking performance all weekend.

The Mexican was three-quarters of a second slower than Sainz, ahead of Williams’ Alex Albon, Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso and McLaren’s Oscar Piastri.

Several drivers under investigation

Leclerc is hoping to repeat his Monaco heroics where he converted pole into a win, but could be hit with a grid penalty.

His swerve towards Norris on the run down to Turn Seven was described as a moment of “road rage” by Sky Sports F1’s Karun Chandhok.

He is meeting the stewards to explain his actions after being frustrated at alleged blocking from Norris, then came across Verstappen and Sainz also having their own incident, without colliding, on the run down to Turn 10.

Earlier in the session, Lance Stroll had a similar incident where he made contact with Lewis Hamilton as he also showed his anger at alleged impeding.

Sky Sports F1’s live Spanish GP schedule

Saturday June 22
1.10pm: F2 Sprint
2.10pm: Spanish GP Qualifying build-up
3pm: Spanish GP Qualifying
5pm: F1 Academy Race 1

Spanish Grand Prix: McLaren hospitality suite evacuated due to fire | F1 News

On: June 22, 2024 By: admin

McLaren’s hospitality suite at the Spanish Grand Prix has been evacuated after a fire broke out ahead of final practice.

Fire services arrived on the scene shortly after 12:00 local time with smoke emerging from the building at the Circuit de Catalunya outside of Barcelona.

According to the PA news agency, Lando Norris was among those evacuated as the blaze broke out just as Practice Three was due to start.

A McLaren spokesperson confirmed all team members had been evacuated safely.

A short statement read: “This morning we evacuated our Team Hub paddock hospitality unit following a fire alert, the team has been safely evacuated while the local fire brigade handled the issue.”

Sky Sports News understands that at least two fire staff personnel were treated for smoke inhalation but their condition is not thought to be serious.

McLaren CEO Zak Brown was seen outside the two-levelled suite as final practice started as scheduled.

Brookes: We could smell the smoke from TV compound

Sky Sports F1’s Rachel Brookes at McLaren:

“I’ve just spoken to someone from the team who was in the kitchen and they say the smoke has come from between the floors which explains why it was difficult to put out. They think it was electrical.

“The smoke came down into the hospitality which was busy with media and guests.

“The driver rooms are inside the ground floor, so they need to get their helmets and race suits, unless they have spares for final practice.

“Everyone from McLaren got out OK but a couple of fire personnel have been taken away with oxygen masks.

“We could smell the smoke from the TV compound which is quite a way away.”

‘Fire teams were quickly on the scene’

Sky Sports’ James Galloway in Barcelona:

“Fire teams were quickly on the scene in the paddock with crews seen with hoses going into the hospitality unit, which was evacuated after the fire broke out.

“It’s a busy paddock, as ever, at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya but officials cleared a central path through the middle of the paddock so the emergency vehicles could easily get through to get to the McLaren unit and unfolding incident.”

Lewis Hamilton: Mercedes driver ‘feeling great’ as four-way Spanish GP fight hopes grow | F1 News

On: June 21, 2024 By: admin

Lewis Hamilton said he “felt great” after he topped second practice at the Spanish Grand Prix on an incredibly tight Friday in Barcelona.

Five different teams filled the top five spots in Practice Two, with Hamilton edging out Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz by 0.022s and 0.055s ahead of McLaren’s Lando Norris.

Mercedes were in contention for the win last time out in Canada for the first time this year and they have continued their strong form into Spain, a track with a mixture of corners that tests every part of the car.

“P1 was so-so. We learned a lot in that session then P2 felt quite a bit better. Made some good changes to the car and I felt great today,” said Hamilton.

“Very hot track, very tough on the tyres, especially on the long run. It doesn’t feel like we were too far off. I won’t take too much notice of lap times necessarily.

“I think the car is definitely in a better place. I think we have some work to improve it overnight to see if we can hold onto the Red Bulls, Ferraris and McLarens.

“Everyone at the factory has been working so hard, as they are every year. But [we have] more of a north star and a much better understanding of where we want to go with the car and the incremental steps we have been taking.”

George Russell was eighth quickest and half a second off his Mercedes team-mate, but he has delivered when it mattered most in qualifying this year and is not concerned about the gap to Hamilton.

Russell said Mercedes had the best long run pace, which also bodes well for Sunday’s race, but expects Red Bull to improve.

“I am feeling good,” he said. “The car is performing well around this circuit. Obviously need to have a closer look at it but Lewis top of the timesheet, really great to see, I felt really strong on the medium tyre.

“Long run in P1, we were up there with the quickest. It is only Friday but it has been a while since we have been consistently at the upper end.

“I think we were probably quickest in the long run and not as quick in the low fuel qualy pace whereas this afternoon qualy pace looked really strong.

“I am feeling good, feeling excited, this is what we have been chasing for a long time. We don’t want to get ahead of ourselves. Lewis did a great job and a great lap.

“We always know come qualifying, the Red Bulls turn it up, Max is going to be on it, the McLarens were fast, Carlos was fast so we will put in a good fight.”

Verstappen not giving anything away

Red Bull were expected to have an advantage at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya as the track is more conventional and theoretically plays to the aerodynamic strengths of their car.

However, championship leader Max Verstappen was only fifth in second practice, behind Alpine’s Pierre Gasly in fourth.

“We just tried a few different set-ups out there in P1 and P2. The day itself was a bit more normal without any issues. That’s what we were hoping for and now it’s about trying to tidy up the car a bit,” he said.

Sergio Perez has a three-grid place penalty for the Spanish Grand Prix after driving back to the pits in Canada with a damaged rear wing.

Perez had a difficult Friday as he was fifth and 13th in the two sessions, which suggests Red Bull may only have one car at the front, given his penalty.

“I started the day well but into P2 we made a lot of changes and we lost the track somewhere,” said Perez.

“There are many things to analyse. We have done a lot of changes and explored the car quite a bit to pick the right bits going into tomorrow.”

Ferrari and McLaren in the running for pole

Sainz and Norris were in the top three of both of Friday’s sessions as Ferrari and McLaren also showed pace.

Ferrari brought a new floor and rear end to this weekend’s race, which Sainz says is working well.

“It has been a challenging Friday for everyone because the track was really slippery. It was very difficult to put together laps with the wind and the high track temps so it was honestly a challenge the whole way through,” he added.

“It looks like over one lap we are reasonably ok, over a long run we seem to struggle a bit more a bit like we did last year here, so let’s see if we can put together a better package especially for Sunday. Over one lap we are fine.”

Charles Leclerc had limited running in the second half of P2 as Ferrari made a big set-up change to his front suspension.

Leclerc was in sixth place at the end of the day and isn’t worried about the lost track time.

“In P2, I found the feeling again. I didn’t put everything together and still quite a bit of pace to find. Overall, it’s a bit of a difficult Friday for me but I know where to find the lap time so I’m not too worried for [Saturday].

“I didn’t do the long run that I should have done in FP2 but the few laps we have done there is still plenty to improve. But I have a very clear vision on what we need to do on the car to make it better and I’m confident that [Saturday] will be a step forward.”

McLaren have consistently been in the fight at the front since Norris won his maiden Grand Prix in Miami and this weekend looks to be no different.

Norris says the tyres were overheating quickly due to the warm conditions and expects the close practice to continue into qualifying and the race.

“A pretty good day. Never easy in these hot conditions. It never feels amazing. The tyres overheat very quickly, so it’s difficult to get everything in the perfect window. I felt comfortable with the car since the beginning,” he said.

“It’s close and will be about trying to improve the small things tomorrow because I’m sure it will be close again like it was in Canada. We are trying to improve a bit in every area.”

Sky Sports F1’s live Spanish GP schedule

Saturday June 22
9.35am: F3 Sprint
11.15am: Spanish GP Practice Three (session starts at 11.30am)
1.10pm: F2 Sprint
2.10pm: Spanish GP Qualifying build-up
3pm: Spanish GP Qualifying
5pm: F1 Academy Race 1

Spanish GP: Lewis Hamilton surges to fastest Practice Two time with chasing pack ahead of Red Bull | F1 News

On: June 21, 2024 By: admin

Lewis Hamilton set the pace for Mercedes in a fascinating Practice Two session at the Spanish Grand Prix in which Max Verstappen was only fifth fastest after a struggle in his Red Bull.

Underlining the growing multi-team competitiveness at the front of the field in F1 on a Barcelona circuit that Verstappen absolutely dominated on last year, Red Bull’s big rivals – Mercedes, Ferrari and McLaren – finished with one car apiece in a closely-matched top three.

And it was Hamilton, who has endured a difficult season so far and was disappointed with his own performance last time out in Canada when team-mate George Russell took pole and then contended for the win, who posted Friday’s quickest lap of 1:13.264.

Spain’s Carlos Sainz, whose Ferrari team have brought a big car upgrade to this event, was a mere 0.022s adrift in second place with McLaren’s Lando Norris, the Practice One pacesetter, only 0.055s off the front himself.

Verstappen though finished 0.240s back in fifth behind surprise interloper Pierre Gasly, who was fourth on a competitive opening day for Alpine. Esteban Ocon was ninth in their other car.

On his earlier medium-tyre run, Verstappen was heard over Red Bull team radio complaining about his car’s balance, particularly at the rear, on a high-speed track where the ability to attack the fast corners is key.

The RB20 then did not show the outright pace of the top three when the field switched down to the soft-tyre runs.

Team-mate Sergio Perez, who carries a three-place grid penalty into Saturday from the last race, was only 13th in the sister car despite completing his soft-tyre run later than everyone else when grip levels should have been more advantageous.

Charles Leclerc was only sixth in the second Ferrari with Oscar Piastri seventh in the other McLaren.

Mercedes’ Russell had set the pace on the medium compound but slipped to eighth on the soft-tyre simulations.

More to follow…

Spanish GP Practice Two Timesheet


Driver	Team	Time
1) Lewis Hamilton	Mercedes	1:13.264
2) Carlos Sainz	Ferrari	+0.022
3) Lando Norris	McLaren	+0.055
4) Pierre Gasly	Alpine	+0.179
5) Max Verstappen	Red Bull	+0.240
6) Charles Leclerc	Ferrari	+0.333
7) Oscar Piastri	McLaren	+0.358
8) George Russell	Mercedes	+0.458
9) Esteban Ocon	Alpine	+0.502
10) Valtteri Bottas	Sauber	+0.660
11) Kevin Magnussen	Haas	+0.757
12) Nico Hulkenberg	Haas	+0.789
13) Sergio Perez	Red Bull	+0.817
14) Fernando Alonso	Aston Martin	+0.827
15) Yuki Tsunoda	RB	+0.947
16) Daniel Ricciardo	RB	+0.993
17) Zhou Guanyu	Sauber	+1.081
18) Lance Stroll	Aston Martin	+1.138
19) Alex Albon	Williams	+1.543
20) Logan Sargeant	Williams	+1.806

Sky Sports F1’s live Spanish GP schedule

Friday June 21
1.55pm: F3 Qualifying
2.50pm: F2 Qualifying
3.35pm: Spanish GP Practice Two (session starts at 4pm)
5.25pm: F1 Academy Qualifying
6.15pm: The F1 Show