Formula One news

McLaren happy with strong early form

McLaren Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton set the fastest time in both Friday's Free Practice sessions for the German Grand Prix in Hockenheim. In the afternoon, Lewis completed 37 laps and posted a time of 1m15.025 which was the fastest time of the day. Heikki Kovalainen drove 37 laps and was fourth with a 1m15.990. 

"The car felt quite different this afternoon compared to this morning's running," said Hamilton. "Maybe the wind had picked up, or changed direction, but the car didn't feel as stable. But by the end of the session, however, the car felt a lot more consistent - we found a good direction with the tyres and the set-up and so things look positive for tomorrow."

Kovalainen commented, "The front-end of the car felt very good, but I felt less comfortable with the rear of the car, particularly in some of the slow-speed corners. But we made a number of small changes to the set-up and, by the middle of the session, I definitely felt I could push harder and found improved handling under both braking and traction. A good start to our weekend's work." 

Team boss Ron Dennis added, "Both Lewis and Heikki enjoyed a trouble-free opening day of practice, and while we don't know the respective fuel loads of our rivals, we nonetheless feel comfortable with our pace. As the second of the team's two home races, this is an important event for everybody - particularly for our colleagues in Stuttgart, thousands of whom join us this weekend. Lewis's lap at the
end of second practice looked extremely impressive - but we're fully aware that there's a lot of work ahead and that this will be an exciting and closely-contested grand prix."

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