Formula 1 2013 Belgian Grand Prix - Sebastian Vettel Springs Spa Surprise

Practice

Practice was kicked off by typically wet conditions, surprising few that had seen Spa before. In FP1 most drivers put in an early lap before waiting for conditions to improve. FP2 saw a dry afternoon session and was followed by another dry session ahead of qualifying for FP3. Red Bull put a good mark on the weekend as Vettel went sixth in FP1, followed by first in both FP2 and FP3. Webber was only 19th in FP1, but backed it up with P2 and P3 in the other sessions. Both drivers were generally happy with the car, but felt there was some more performance to come, and Vettel was hit by a puncture to the rear right of his car, ending his running in FP2. Ferrari looked strong as Alonso went fastest in FP1 and P2 in FP3, while Felipe Massa was top five in FP2 and FP3, and both drivers were satisfied with their data gathered as they tested set up changes and aerodynamic parts. Alonso also picked up a rear-right puncture, though without any delamination. Lotus had trouble with tyre temperature, and the wet conditions prevented them properly analysing their low-drag device, long in the pipeline. They switched to longer runs, and whilst the car didn't feel entirely comfortable for either driver the lap times were a solid, resulting in top ten running through FP2 and FP3. Mercedes didn't show any particular pace through practice, only getting as high as P5 and P6 in FP2, but generally hovering around the bottom of the top ten. Hamilton wasn't entirely happy with the balance but both drivers were optimistic they could have a good car ahead of qualifying, whilst Ross Brawn commented on tyre temperature issues, similar to Lotus. McLaren had mixed sessions, with both drivers happy with the car and balance in the cooler, damper conditions of FP1 as Perez reached P4, but much less satisfied by the warmer afternoon in the dry. FP3 saw another turn around as Button made P6, leaving McLaren's true pace unclear, and both drivers hoping for wet conditions. Force India had a great FP1, making P2 and P3 in the wet conditions, but fell back to the midfield in the dry conditions of FP2 and FP3. The drivers were happy with the car, much more so than in Hungary a month ago, but had some downforce and balance issues to solve. Torro Rosso made a good start to the weekend, learning useful information for wet conditions from FP1 and then splitting their strategy for FP2. The results were a stark contrast as Vergne leapt to P5 with a comfortable car, and Ricciardo dropped to P16. Vergne then took P4 in final practice to underline the cars pace. Vergne was very pleased, and felt they had a good car for both wet and dry conditions, with good one lap pace, while Ricciardo felt he could deliver come Saturday. Sauber made good progress in FP1 in the damp conditions, with both cars in the top ten, though they slipped back in the dry of FP2, with neither driver happy with balance and Gutierrez feeling uncomfortable with the low downforce setup. He turned it around for FP3 however, taking P7 as Hulkenberg languished in P17. They tested new aero parts and a passive double-DRS system, but needed to do more fundamental work ahead of the race. Williams, like other teams, struggled with the balance of their car as they found more pace in the changing FP1 than in the dry conditions that followed. Maldonado felt they were close to really unlocking some pace from the car, whilst Bottas felt the prime tyre was stronger, and they needed to find more grip. Caterham continued to lead the back-row battle ahead of Marussia, enjoying a strong first practice. Setup wasn't entirely perfect however, as Van der Garde discovered as he dropped it at turn 15, clouting the barriers at the end of the session. Both cars suffered from oversteer, but they held their advantage in FP3 over their main rival. Marussia felt their car was better suited for Spa than it had been in Hungary, and Chilton beat teammate Bianchi in FP1 to a decent P16. The team didn't quite extract the cars full potential, and Chilton was delayed by a steering rack change in FP2, hampering data acquisition as they ran a split strategy similar to Torro Rosso.
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