F1 Belgian Grand Prix: Friday practice results from Spa-Francorchamps

Charles Leclerc’s Ferrari was quickest in Belgium on Friday.

Charles Leclerc led the Formula 1 field in practice for the Belgium Grand Prix on Friday at the fearsome Spa-Francorchamps circuit, while Sergio Perez ended his day watching his Racing Point car sit smoking by the side of the road.

Things we know from the season so far: Ferrari has the quickest car in a straight line but corners are not a strong point. On the flip side, Mercedes and Red Bull are blistering through corners, but have a lower top speed.

Now this has been established, it will come as no surprise that Ferrari was quickest on the largely flat out sectors one and three at Spa, while Red Bull and Mercedes are the ones to beat in the middle, much more technical sector two.

It is difficult to read too much into the six-tenth second gap between Leclerc and Sebastian Vettel at the front. Fuel loads are unknown, engine modes are unknown – so Leclerc may just have been given a little more to play with on his lap.

Alex Albon, promoted from Toro Rosso to replace Pierre Gasly, was hot on the heels of Red Bull teammate Max Verstappen during the early part of the session.

Again, the timesheet must not be read literally in the case of the Red Bull drivers, as a raft of engine penalties mean that Albon will be starting at the back of the grid, regardless of his qualifying performance.

Racing Point brought an upgrade package to Spa. Now running a more conventional nose, as apposed to the nostril arrangement which they had run for a number of years, Perez seemed to be enjoying the balance of the car and set the fifth fastest time.

Lance Stroll had previously been on the radio to his team complaining of something seemingly burning around his seat. Pitting to check things out, it appeared that all was well but, in the sister car, Perez stopped on track with four-minutes of the session remaining.

The audio playback showed a clear mechanical failure, although it remains unclear whether the issue was gearbox or power unit related.

Practice Two Results

Pos.

Driver

Constructor

Tire

Time

1

Charles Leclerc

Scuderia Ferrari

S

1:44.123

2

Sebastian Vettel

Scuderia Ferrari

S

+0.630

3

Valtteri Bottas

Mercedes-AMG Petronas Motorsport

S

+0.846

4

Lewis Hamilton

Mercedes-AMG Petronas Motorsport

S

+0.892

5

Sergio Perez

SportPesa Racing Point F1 Team

S

+0.994

6

Max Verstappen

Aston Martin Red Bull Racing

M

+1.271

7

Kimi Raikkonen

Alfa Romeo Racing

S

+1.585

8

Lance Stroll

SportPesa Racing Point F1 Team

S

+1.609

9

Daniel Ricciardo

Renault F1 Team

S

+1.612

10

Alexander Albon

Aston Martin Red Bull Racing

S

+1.648

11

Carlos Sainz Jr.

McLaren F1 Team

S

+1.876

12

Romain Grosjean

Rich Energy Haas F1 Team

S

+1.997

13

Nico Hulkenberg

Renault F1 Team

S

+2.086

14

Daniil Kvyat

Red Bull Toro Rosso Honda

S

+2.091

15

Lando Norris

McLaren F1 Team

S

+2.135

16

Antonio Giovinazzi

Alfa Romeo Racing

S

+2.205

17

Pierre Gasly

Red Bull Toro Rosso Honda

S

+2.251

18

Kevin Magnussen

Rich Energy Haas F1 Team

S

+2.276

19

George Russell

ROKiT Williams Racing

S

+3.764

20

Robert Kubica

ROKiT Williams Racing

S

+4.208

Source: Read Full Article