German GP - Friday Summary: Hot heat Ferrari, Gasly in the wall & Bottas or Ocon?
F1 News
- Bevan Youl
Friday at the German Grand Prix saw high temperatures throughout both practice sessions where Ferrari thrived, Mercedes struggling with tyres, Pierre Gasly hitting a wall and whether Mercedes opt for Valtteri Bottas or Esteban Ocon next year?
FP1 and FP2
Sebastian Vettel, who has had a lack of form the recent races, came out on top with a 1:14,013 at his home race ahead of teammate Charles Leclerc. Mercedes Lewis Hamilton and Bottas pushed their cars to the point where they both need minor repairs. Bottas almost followed Vettel's path last year as he came off the track and into the gravel, just avoiding the barriers. The midfield of Renault, McLaren and Haas were all pushing each other, looking closer than before.
During FP2 Charles Leclerc got the better of his teammate with a 1:13.449, making it successive one-two’s for the Scuderia who took advantage of the heat. Mercedes once again were unable to better with Hamilton sitting in third and Bottas fourth. Max Verstappen ended up fifth, not too far behind Bottas but doesn’t feel that Red Bull can challenge Ferrari and Mercedes. Romain Grosjean finished in the top 10 during both sessions which could spark a turnaround for Haas. With fifteen minutes to go Pierre Gasly lost his rear at the last corner, smacking into the barriers badly damaging the left side of his Red Bull.
Full FP2 report here
Wolff on choosing between Bottas and Ocon
While Valtteri Bottas has certainly proved himself this year in comparison to last, Esteban Ocon currently sits in the Mercedes garage as their reserve driver waiting to find out whether he has a seat or not for 2020. Toto Wolff says picking Bottas could mean losing Ocon “for a year or two” and with interest from elsewhere could see him gone.
Read the full story here
Has the Spanish Grand Prix been saved?
With Liberty Media doing its utmost to bring Formula 1 to new and different parts of the world with the introduction of races in Vietnam and the Netherlands, it means some current circuits are in danger of being dropped. Liberty Media want to keep the number of races at 21 but “a short-term measure’ looks to keep the Spanish Grand Prix alive for now.
Read the full story here
Pirelli: “It’s not fair to change the tyres at this stage”
Mario Isola reveals changing the tyres partway through the season would be unfair. Calls have been made from some teams to revert back to the 2018 tyres or start using the 2020 tyres earlier. But Isola doesn’t want to “favour or disadvantage teams.”