Free 2: Lewis Hamilton fastest as the rain continues at Silverstone

Lewis Hamilton has ended the second practice session fastest ahead of this weekends British Grand Prix, as the rain continued to lash down upon the Silverstone circuit. The Sauber of Kamui Kobayashi came home 2nd, ahead of the Mercedes of Michael Schumacher.

The session started under similar conditions to the morning session, with persistent rain continuing to plague proceedings on track. Once the session got underway, no driver immediately left the confines of the pit lane. Eventually it was the Marussia of Timo Glock who braved the elements first, as Fernando Alonso followed the German out on track. In literally treacherous conditions, Timo Glock set the initial pace with a 02:11.964. Bruno Senna then went quickest, with a 02:10.215 before the rain made driving on the track unbearably difficult. As the drivers returned to the pits, an eery silence descended upon the Silverstone circuit.

After what seemed like an eternity, Kamui Kobayashi finally returned to the track to applause from the Silverstone faithful. The Japanese driver flew to the top with a 02:04.198, as Fernando Alonso bravely took to the track with the Cinturato intermediate (green) tyres on his Ferrari.

The Sauber duo of Kamui Kobayashi and Sergio Perez began swapping places at the top, with Kobayashi eventually winning the in-team battle with a 01:58.894. The one and only red flag delay of the session occurred when Bruno Senna spun and slammed his Williams into the wall on the exit of turn 14. This incident caused considerable damage to the Williams, and left only Pastor Maldonado circulating for the Grove-based outfit.

Kamui Kobayashi was the first driver to exit the pits as the session resumed, once again visibly eager to continue circulating the track. The former GP2 driver continued to improve, setting a 01:57.613 to extend his reign atop the timing sheets. However, Kobayashi’s reign was brought to an abrupt end when local hero Lewis Hamilton stormed to the top with a 01:56.345, bringing many smiles to the faces of the Silverstone faithful.

As the session came to an end, both Sergio Perez and Fernando Alonso spun, with the latter lightly tapping the wall on the exit of turn 15. With both practice sessions now over, the teams will already be looking ahead to tomorrow morning’s final practice session ahead of qualifying for Sunday’s British Grand Prix.

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