First day of Running Complete at Silverstone

Both drivers opted to run the same tyre strategy across the day, taking one set of the Medium and the Soft compounds in FP1 and then again in FP2.

As usual, the team’s work focused on finding a good car balance across the single lap and the long run.

With ambient temperatures in the mid 20°Cs, track temperatures in the low 40°Cs and windy conditions prevalent throughout the day, that was a tricky challenge.

Both drivers completed significant long runs in both FP1 and FP2 and finished the day with Kimi P6 and George P8 on the timing screens.

The team will now dig through and analyse all the data from Friday, working hard overnight to make improvements ahead of the rest of the weekend.

Kimi Antonelli

Today was not the easiest Friday of the year we’ve had so far. The temperature was quite a bit higher than expected and that made looking after the tyres slightly more challenging. That said, the car felt decent, and I was happy with the overall balance. Silverstone is a great track, and I enjoyed being out there, exploring the limits, and pushing the car. There are clear areas for us to work on this evening, and for me to improve in my driving, so I’m excited to see what improvements we can make overnight.

Tomorrow is forecast to be slightly cooler which should help us. We should have some cloud cover too which may help keep the track temperature lower. If we can make gains this evening, then our goal is still to get ourselves into the fight with those who looked strong today, such as McLaren and Ferrari. Let’s see what we can do.

George Russell

It’s been a warm day here at Silverstone, with track temperatures upwards of 40°C. That made it a challenge to look after the tyres; it is frustrating that we are affected by the weather as much as we are, but we’re all focused on improving that, particularly as we head into summer months where this will be the norm.

If the forecast cooler conditions do appear over the rest of the weekend, that will likely help us.We won’t just sit here hoping that is the case though. We will work hard overnight to make improvements and give ourselves the best race car for Saturday and Sunday. I love being here at Silverstone, I love seeing all the fans, and I am hopeful that we can still get ourselves into the fight at the front, put on a good show for them, and give them something to cheer about.

Andrew Shovlin, Trackside Engineering Director

It is always good to get on track at Silverstone, the closest race to our two factories at Brackley and Brixworth. Knowing many of our colleagues will be in the grandstands this week cheering us on at the circuit is always a boost. That will provide added motivation for our work overnight as we aim to find more pace in the car after a tricky Friday.

We opted to only run the Medium and Soft compounds today, like most other teams. We were able to complete plenty of single lap and long run work but were limited by rear tyre overheating. Silverstone puts a lot of energy into the tyre, and we saw track temperatures around 40°C, so the phenomenon was not completely unexpected, but it proved to be our main constraint on the long runs, alongside a tricky car balance in the gusty conditions.

We will need to make a step overnight to be able to challenge at the front this weekend, and we have several areas we are already targeting to do that. We will work diligently trackside and in the simulator at Brackley this evening to find gains ahead of FP3 and Qualifying tomorrow.

FP1 Result

FP2 Result