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Vote: Autosport Best of the Month for June 2026

General
Vote: Autosport Best of the Month for June 2026

Why similar Williams and Aston Martin failures are oddly reassuring

Feature
Formula 1
Austrian GP
Why similar Williams and Aston Martin failures are oddly reassuring

McLaren still to investigate why it's losing to Mercedes on the straights, despite same PU

Formula 1
Austrian GP
McLaren still to investigate why it's losing to Mercedes on the straights, despite same PU

Explained: The factors behind WRC’s big 2027 transition and the hurdles it still faces

Feature
WRC
Rally Greece
Explained: The factors behind WRC’s big 2027 transition and the hurdles it still faces

Marquez admits he "didn't want to walk into the paddock" because he "associated it with pain"

MotoGP
Dutch GP
Marquez admits he "didn't want to walk into the paddock" because he "associated it with pain"

Top five roles on Motorsport Jobs this week

General
Top five roles on Motorsport Jobs this week

Autosport Retro video: Remembering the 1987 British GP

Formula 1
British GP
Autosport Retro video: Remembering the 1987 British GP

Williams plans “almost entirely new car” by Azerbaijan GP

Formula 1
Austrian GP
Williams plans “almost entirely new car” by Azerbaijan GP

Australia Friday quotes: Bridgestone

Hirohide Hamashima, Bridgestone director of motorsport tyre development

Q. What was significant about today's running?

The day started with the expected dusty track so there was a lot of surface improvement through the first session. Everyone used the hard Potenza in FP1 for their set-up work but it was difficult to understand car potential without knowing the fuel loads in the cars. The second practice session had rain and we saw some good use of the intermediate tyre. This tyre worked well in damp and drying conditions so we are confident of its performance if rain returns.

Q. How do you expect this allocation to work over the weekend?

This is a difficult question to answer due to the mixed weather conditions in FP2. The target of teams in this session is to compare the performance between the hard and soft compounds, but the Melbourne weather interrupted this. At the end of the session there were still small drops of rain falling from the sky, but there was still use of the soft compound. We saw expected levels of graining on this tyre for a 'green' track. The running we have had so far is insufficient for conclusions to be drawn, so tomorrow's practice will be very important.

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