China – Free Practice 2: Hamilton Dominates a Strong Alonso

Mixed skies for the start of this second free practice session but Lewis Hamilton still opted for the cap. He may not go out right away. After his suspension problem in the morning, his mechanics are tirelessly working on his car. Räikkönen, settled in his seat, is also ready to make up for lost time this morning.

Green light! Maldonado is the first to break the silence of the Chinese paddock. Before starting, he must go through the mandatory start simulation at the end of the pit lane. He is imitated by all his peers, who avoid following his example after a small off-track excursion in the last corner. Kvyat sets the first benchmark time at 1:42.279. The big names are getting active. Rosberg, then Vettel take to the track. The Red Bull sets the fastest time over its little sister Toro Rosso, at 1:41.087. Nico Rosberg crushes it right after: 1:39.792, immediately beaten by Fernando Alonso at 1:39.251!

Kimi Räikkönen begins his first fast lap of the day, leaving Lewis Hamilton as the only driver yet to hit the track in this second free practice session. Fifteenth time for the Finn, at 1:42.308.

It is definitely Maldonado who leads the way today. He is the first to switch to soft tires, setting the fourth fastest time in 1:40.455. The soft tires are two seconds faster compared to the hard ones.

After thirty minutes, it is very calm on the track. Alonso is still ahead of Rosberg, Ricciardo, and Maldonado. The use of the softest tires is becoming widespread. Pérez takes advantage of their grip to achieve the third-fastest time, at 1:40.193. Maldonado! He’s at it again. Always ready to lead, he’s the first to cause a yellow flag by hitting the wall at the pit entrance. « I crashed, sorry ». Front right wheel torn off. Not sure we’ll see the Venezuelan again.

Hamilton appears on the timing sheets with the sixth fastest time at 1:40.505 on hard tires. Meanwhile, Rosberg, on soft tires, improves the best time to 1:38.726. But not for long. Alonso’s Ferrari surges ahead with a 1:38.456! The Shanghai track seems to suit the F14T much better than Sakhir. Last year, the Spaniard claimed his first victory of the 2013 season on this track. Ricciardo, in third, leads Vettel by more than a tenth at Red Bull.

Best time for Hamilton in 1:38.315! Four tenths ahead of his teammate. The issues seem to be resolved on the Briton’s W05.

After an hour, Kimi Räikkönen sets his first fast lap on soft tires with 1:39.283. He is more than eight-tenths of a second behind Alonso. Most of the field is simulating a Grand Prix with the soft tires. On his first lap under these conditions, Hamilton clocks in at 1:43.081. Rosberg’s tires seem to be struggling. 1:44.466. Is a balance adjustment expected on the W05 for the German ahead of the Grand Prix? In the middle of a stint, Alonso is running at 1:43.922.

On the radio, Guillaume Rocquelin informs Vettel that all drivers are experiencing the same graining issues as him. 1:44.512 for the quadruple world champion in title. Massa’s Williams runs consistently in the 1:45 range. The hierarchy seems to be taking shape little by little as the drivers continue with long stints on hard tires. The “top teams” are very close to each other under these conditions. The lap times remain unchanged for the end of this session.

Hamilton tops the timesheet ahead of Alonso, Rosberg, and Ricciardo.