Vodafone McLaren Mercedes drivers Heikki Kovalainen and Lewis Hamilton finished Friday’s second Free Practice session for the Belgian Grand Prix at Spa Francorchamps in third and fourth positions respectively. In a session which was disrupted by light rain and a red flag half an hour before the end, Heikki completed 19 laps and set a time of 1m48.740. Lewis did 17 laps and was on a 1m48.805. In the morning session, Lewis was third fastest with a 1m47.878 (27 laps), whilst Heikki was fourth with a 1m47.932 (24 laps).
This Grand Prix also marks the 40th anniversary of the McLaren team’s first-ever Formula 1 victory, achieved by Bruce McLaren driving a McLaren M7A at Spa Francorchamps on 9th June 1968.
Practice Session One:
10.04: out / in
10.19: 5 laps, best 1:48.266
10.37: 4 laps, best 1:48.575
10.55: 6 laps, best 1:48.461
11.14: 11 laps, best 1:47.878 (3rd)
Practice Session Two:
14.01: 4 laps, best 1:48.805 (4th)
14.13: 4 laps, best 1:55.275
15.17: 8 laps, best 1:48.920
"This morning, the temperatures were quite low so the track lacked a bit of grip and made warming the tyres more difficult than normal. The wet-dry conditions we encountered are typical of Spa, but they make if difficult to change your set-up because you’re always attacking a moving target. Still, we got some good data this morning before the rain came, so we feel we’re in good shape for tomorrow."
