Morning After: Ferrari Take a Freebie

What to make of Friday running at Hockenheim – well ain’t that the million dollar question?

Even by usual practice standards, it was a day that was particularly hard to interpret. We know the conditions Saturday and Sunday will be nothing like they were on Friday, so is there anything to glean from Ferrari topping the timesheets?

If you’re an optimistic tifoso? Sure – just not for this weekend. There’s at least a case to be made Mercedes’ upgrades haven’t completely resolved the problems from Austria, and if that brings the Scuderia back into play, this could be a harbinger of what’s to come at a potentially-hot Hungary, and a definitely-hot Singapore.

Realistically though, nah. They’re under no obligation to show their hand this early, and in any case, it’s hard to believe a car that received no upgrades in the Ferrari has suddenly caught up. Mercedes aren’t Haas, after all.

No, Friday was just an unusual day amidst some unusual weather. That’s not to say Sebastian Vettel and Charles Leclerc can’t cause an upset this weekend, it just won’t be on the back of this performance.

1.291 seconds. Gap separating Romain Grosjean (P6) from Kevin Magnussen (P18) in FP2. Formula 1.5 continues to be quite the battle.

56°C. Track temp on Friday during FP2. A bit toasty, shall we say?

40%. Chance of rain on Saturday at Hockenheim, a significant drop from previous forecasts. That said, with the air temp set to hover only around 27, expect to see a lot more from Mercedes.

For a guy who spent the majority of his Thursday presser talking up the pay-off his “hard work” had seen in Silverstone, Friday was definitely not the follow-up performance Pierre Gasly needed. Even setting aside the ongoing job-security talk, it doesn’t bode well for his fragile confidence.

Who said the Germans don’t have style? Towing Kevin Magnussen’s car in FP1 with a Porsche was pretty damn baller.

Interesting to see Toto Wolff remain noncommittal on Valtteri Bottas’ future. Last year they had their deal done for 2019 at the German grand prix, yet this year they’re waiting until August. I wonder if that’s because they’re exploring the availability of a particular Dutch driver…