Russian GP: Vettel leads Ferrari 1-2 in second practice
Sebastian Vettel set the pace in second practice for the Formula 1 Russian Grand Prix as Ferrari appeared to have the edge over rival Mercedes.
Sebastian Vettel, Ferrari SF70H
Sutton Images
Vettel, whose teammate Kimi Raikkonen had set the pace in first practice, used a fresh set of ultrasoft Pirellis to clock a 1m34.120s at Sochi.
The German reported an engine hesitation on his out-lap and, after a conservative first flying lap, Vettel put the hammer down on the second to clock a lap 0.263s quicker than Raikkonen.
Mercedes appeared to have the edge in the first sector, but both Lewis Hamilton and Valtteri Bottas' laps fell away thereafter.
Bottas was Ferrari's closest challenger in third, 0.670s off the pace, with Hamilton a few thousandths further back in fourth.
It was a scrappy session for Mercedes as both drivers struggled to get their Pirelli tyres into the right operating window, with their quickest laps coming several laps into the run.
Max Verstappen got the better of Red Bull teammate Daniel Ricciardo, ending the day fifth fastest, just over three tenths clear of the Australian.
However, Verstappen's session finished 20 minutes early when he parked his Red Bull at the side of the track and reported he was "out of power".
The close battle in the midfield looks set to continue, with only half a second separating Felipe Massa in seventh and Jolyon Palmer in 13th.
Between them was Nico Hulkenberg, Kevin Magnussen, Sergio Perez, Esteban Ocon and Fernando Alonso.
Romain Grosjean, whose Haas team tried a different brake supplier in Friday practice, complained of understeer throughout as he finished 14th.
Toro Rosso had a tough session, with Carlos Sainz and home favourite Daniil Kvyat 15th and 17th respectively after their runs on the ultrasofts.
Stoffel Vandoorne, who sighed "incredible" as one of the Force Indias breezed by, ended up 16th, just under four tenths adrift of Alonso.
The McLaren driver is set to start Sunday's race from the back of the grid after the team changed the entire engine ahead of FP2 following more problems.
Lance Stroll was 19th, 1.5s slower than teammate Massa, but he was the only driver who did not run the ultrasoft tyre.
Cla | Driver | Chassis | Engine | Laps | Time | Gap |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Sebastian Vettel | Ferrari | Ferrari | 36 | 1'34.120 | |
2 | Kimi Raikkonen | Ferrari | Ferrari | 36 | 1'34.383 | 0.263 |
3 | Valtteri Bottas | Mercedes | Mercedes | 36 | 1'34.790 | 0.670 |
4 | Lewis Hamilton | Mercedes | Mercedes | 34 | 1'34.829 | 0.709 |
5 | Max Verstappen | Red Bull | TAG | 15 | 1'35.540 | 1.420 |
6 | Daniel Ricciardo | Red Bull | TAG | 26 | 1'35.910 | 1.790 |
7 | Felipe Massa | Williams | Mercedes | 39 | 1'36.261 | 2.141 |
8 | Nico Hulkenberg | Renault | Renault | 38 | 1'36.329 | 2.209 |
9 | Kevin Magnussen | Haas | Ferrari | 31 | 1'36.506 | 2.386 |
10 | Sergio Perez | Force India | Mercedes | 38 | 1'36.600 | 2.480 |
11 | Esteban Ocon | Force India | Mercedes | 39 | 1'36.654 | 2.534 |
12 | Fernando Alonso | McLaren | Honda | 27 | 1'36.765 | 2.645 |
13 | Jolyon Palmer | Renault | Renault | 22 | 1'36.771 | 2.651 |
14 | Romain Grosjean | Haas | Ferrari | 31 | 1'37.039 | 2.919 |
15 | Carlos Sainz Jr. | Toro Rosso | Renault | 36 | 1'37.083 | 2.963 |
16 | Stoffel Vandoorne | McLaren | Honda | 25 | 1'37.125 | 3.005 |
17 | Daniil Kvyat | Toro Rosso | Renault | 35 | 1'37.300 | 3.180 |
18 | Pascal Wehrlein | Sauber | Ferrari | 30 | 1'37.441 | 3.321 |
19 | Lance Stroll | Williams | Mercedes | 36 | 1'37.747 | 3.627 |
20 | Marcus Ericsson | Sauber | Ferrari | 29 | 1'37.819 | 3.699 |
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