Lewis Hamilton concerned for the fans at Silverstone

British Formula 1 star Lewis Hamilton has expressed concerns for fans, after today saw an unbelievable amount of queues as the Silverstone faithful descended upon the legendary circuit. Some people endured hours upon hours of waiting, in what should normally be a 15 minute journey to the circuit.

Once the fans finally reached Silverstone, and negotiated parking in soggy fields, they were met with an equally soggy track as the drivers remained within the confines of the pit lane. However, some drivers did brave the elements to set timed laps, with Kamui Kobayashi even receiving a round of applause at one stage throughout the day.

Lewis Hamilton ended the second session of the day fastest overall, after a lack of running in the morning session as his mechanics changed his engine. With many of the traveling masses eager to catch a glimpse of their hero, Hamilton rewarded the patient crowd with fastest in second practice ahead of Kamui Kobayashi and Michael Schumacher.

“I had some fun out there today!” Explained Hamilton, who won the British Grand Prix in 2008. “I got to do a good few laps too, which was good, because I was concerned that the fans wouldn’t get to see much action. There were so many of them out there today. I can’t remember seeing so many people at a racetrack on a Friday before – it was incredible. British Formula 1 fans are the best in the world!”

Although Lewis Hamilton was quickest in the second session, and enjoyed his time on the slippery track, he believes improvements could be made to the drainage system around the track. With standing water almost flooding parts of the track, the drivers certainly had their work cut-out throughout the day.

“There was a lot of standing water out there, and tons of aquaplaning.” Continued Hamilton, “That’s to be expected when there’s heavy rain, of course, but I have to say that there doesn’t seem to be that much drainage around the circuit. You’re aquaplaning almost all the time, to be honest, so you need to be very in tune with your senses or you’re very likely to lose control. I’m really looking forward to the rest of the weekend, which looks likely to stay chilly and wet.”

Lewis Hamilton hasn’t won around Silverstone since 2008, when the McLaren driver crossed the line over a minute ahead of the next competitor of Nick Heidfeld. The weather was similar to today, and with Hamilton clearly happy in these conditions, a repeat of his 2008 victory is more than possible on Sunday.

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