Hamilton fastest in FP2 as Mercedes dominate

Championship leader Lewis Hamilton

Lewis Hamilton was fastest in the second practice session at the Spanish Grand Prix on another day of dominance for Mercedes.

Valtteri Bottas set the pace in FP1 at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, pipping team-mate Hamilton by 0.039 seconds on Friday.

Hamilton turned the tables on his colleague later in the day by a margin of just 0.287secs, as the Silver Arrows laid down a marker following Max Verstappen's victory in the 70th Anniversary Grand Prix last weekend.

Verstappen was third in both sessions, the Red Bull driver 0.821secs slower than Hamilton in FP2.

That's a wrap on our Friday running - and it's a familiar top three#SpanishGP #F1 pic.twitter.com/Ylk2Oj7f95

— Formula 1 (@F1) August 14, 2020

Daniel Ricciardo was fourth, with Romain Grosjean a promising fifth and Charles Leclerc sixth with the temperature significantly higher in the afternoon.

Sergio Perez, returning this week after missing the last two races as he twice tested positive for coronavirus, was eighth on the timesheets in FP2.

There was a new chassis fitted for Sebastian Vettel this week but the Ferrari driver was only 12th quickest, his fastest lap in the second session 1.521secs slower than Hamilton.

Vettel had been fifth in FP1, only narrowly failing to outpace his team-mate Leclerc as normal service was resumed for Mercedes after they failed to secure victory for the first time this season last Sunday.