Korean GP – Free Practice 2: Hamilton and McLaren on top
On the still damp track of the Yeongam circuit, it was the two McLaren drivers who showed the most speed, confirming the good form displayed by the English single-seater last weekend at Suzuka. Sebastian Vettel takes third position ahead of the Ferrari of Fernando Alonso and his teammate Mark Webber.
The track is still wet at the beginning of this second free practice session, which doesn’t prevent many drivers from quickly leaving their garages. It’s worth noting that they didn’t run much during the day’s first session since it was HRT that was the most diligent with 14 laps.
With the heavy traffic on the circuit, the track is drying up and lap times are improving with each pass. After the first quarter-hour, it’s Jenson Button who holds the first position with a time of 1:51.798. The Briton achieved the best time in all three sectors.
Mid-session, the trajectory is ideal and is getting less and less wet, but it’s not enough for a driver to risk going out with dry track tires. The track remains quite tricky, as experienced by Mark Webber and Lewis Hamilton when they put a wheel on a white line while braking. With 45 minutes to go, the two McLarens are credited with the two best times, confirming their good form shown in Japan.
At the end of the session, Nico Rosberg and Jaime Alguersuari made contact in turn number 1. The German did not see the Toro Rosso exiting the pits and was unable to avoid it. Alguersuari, who was about to try driving on slick tires, passed through the pit lane again while Rosberg abandoned his Mercedes GP at the side of the track.
With only 6 minutes remaining in this free practice session, Jaime Alguersuari exits the pits on super-soft tires. Sébastien Buemi is also on track with the same tires. A strange choice by the small Scuderia considering that many drivers are still making mistakes with the intermediate tires. This is the case for the two Ferrari drivers in turn number 4. Webber also tries the super-softs but is clearly struggling. He decides to return to the pit lane. The same goes for Jenson Button, who cannot get his tires up to temperature.
The session ends with both McLarens at the forefront, Hamilton ahead of Button. Sebastian Vettel, Fernando Alonso, and Mark Webber complete the top 5.
Free Practice 2 Standings for the 2011 South Korean Grand Prix:
| N° | Driver | Team | Times | Gap | Laps |
1 | Hamilton | McLaren | 1:50.828 | 26 | |
2 | Button | McLaren | 1:50.932 | +0.104 | 19 |
3 | Vettel | Red Bull | 1:52.646 | +1.818 | 30 |
4 | Alonso | Ferrari | 1:52.774 | +1.946 | 25 |
5 | Webber | Red Bull | 1:53.049 | +2.221 | 27 |
6 | Alguersuari | Toro Rosso | 1:53.402 | +2.574 | 25 |
7 | Massa | Ferrari | 1:53.707 | +2.879 | 24 |
8 | Rosberg | Mercedes GP | 1:53.914 | +3.086 | 18 |
9 | Buemi | Toro Rosso | 1:53.948 | +3.120 | 27 |
10 | di Resta | Force India | 1:53.957 | +3.129 | 32 |
11 | Petrov | Lotus Renault GP | 1:54.200 | +3.372 | 26 |
12 | Sutil | Force India | 1:54.392 | +3.564 | 26 |
13 | Barrichello | Williams | 1:54.831 | +4.003 | 30 |
14 | Schumacher | Mercedes GP | 1:54.965 | +4.137 | 21 |
15 | Senna | Lotus Renault GP | 1:55.187 | +4.359 | 28 |
16 | Perez | Sauber | 1:55.203 | +4.375 | 24 |
17 | Kobayashi | Sauber | 1:55.544 | +4.716 | 23 |
18 | Maldonado | Williams | 1:56.067 | +5.239 | 22 |
19 | Kovalainen | Team Lotus | 1:56.669 | +5.841 | 20 |
20 | Trulli | Team Lotus | 1:57.173 | +6.345 | 19 |
21 | Glock | Marussia Virgin | 1:58.369 | +7.541 | 25 |
22 | D’Ambrosio | Marussia Virgin | 1:59.458 | +8.630 | 26 |
23 | Ricciardo | Hispania Racing Team | 1:59.958 | +9.130 | 19 |
24 | Liuzzi | Hispania Racing Team | 2:00.165 | +9.337 | 20 |
