Why McLaren and Red Bull starred on Friday
A glance at the FP2 order suggests normal service in the 2019 Formula 1 season will resume at Silverstone. But while Mercedes may well be the form team once more come Sunday, it was the performances of two cars that impressed our technical expert more on Friday
Watching Friday's free practice sessions trackside only gives you a window into how Formula 1 cars are performing in one or two corners - in this case, we are judging it primarily around the Brooklands left-hander at the end of the Wellington straight and then into the long Luffield right-hander.
But it still gives you the chance to pick out the cars that are the most impressive.
That's not in terms of lap time or how fast the car can potentially go, but instead it's only about which cars maintain their balance even when the driver carries a bit more speed into the corner and how they respond. Brooklands is a corner where you brake into the apex and it then tightens up a bit so you need to apply more steering lock. It does show the car characteristics very well.
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