Verstappen dominates British Free Practice 2 and Checo Perez can only finish fourth

Red Bull dominated once again, this time in Free Practice 2 ahead of the British Grand Prix, with Max Verstappen setting the fastest time (1:28.078).

After easing to the quickest time in the first session earlier in the day, the Dutch driver showed his incredible synergy with the RB19; however, for a change he was not followed by his Red Bull teammate Sergio Perez, who finished fourth.

The biggest surprises in FP2 were Carlos Sainz, who finished just 22 thousandths behind the defending World Champion, and Alexander Albon, who took third place, 218 thousandths behind.

The Williams drivers have enjoyed a quite miraculous first day of driving at Silverstone this weekend, so much so that even Logan Sargeant experienced his best session in Formula 1, finishing fifth, just behind Checo Perez.

Whether or not this is down to the influence of former Mercedes strategist, James Vowles, arriving as team principal is unclear, but on Friday it seemed like the Williams car had an almighty straight-light speed setup.

As for the Mexican driver, he left the track rather more puzzled than he expected, being one of the best in race simulation, while he set the best times with medium tires, but struggling for pace in terms of lap times when actually on the circuit. Whilst this doesn’t bode well for qualifying on Saturday, he clearly has a race setup that will be capable of pushing Verstappen.

Disappointments in British GP Practice 2

Without a doubt, Mercedes were the biggest disappointment in front of their majority British fanbase, with the team continuing to struggle with the set-up of their car. This was such a problem that that they were out of the top 10.

George Russell was the best placed in twelfth position, behind Guanyu Zhou, while Lewis Hamilton was on the 15th step, 1.2 seconds behind the leader, Verstappen.

On the other hand, Ferrari experienced polar opposites in the second free practice at Silverstone; while Carlos Sainz was second fastest, the team suffered with Charles Leclerc, who could not take part in the session due to mechanical problems in his car.

The first day of British Grand Prix activities came to an end, which will resume tomorrow with Practice 3 and Qualifying.

FP2 Results: