Mercedes AMG Petronas
Lewis Hamilton returned to the top of the time sheets as the reigning World Champion posted the quickest lap during second practice for the Spanish Grand Prix.
Hamilton set a time of 1:26.852 to beat Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel by 0.408s at a hot Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, with the track temperature inching above 50 degrees Celsius.
Nico Rosberg was third quickest while Kimi Räikkönen ensured Mercedes and Ferrari once again locked out the top four positions.
Daniil Kvyat finished just over a second down on Hamilton as Red Bull showed signs of improvement with its new upgrade package.
Max Verstappen continued Toro Rosso’s encouraging form from the morning session as he went sixth fastest in the STR10, half a second ahead of McLaren’s Jenson Button, who also had a promising showing in the newly painted MP4-30.
Valtteri Bottas returned to the cockpit of the FW37 after sitting out the first session in favour of Susie Wolff and went eighth quickest.
Carlos Sainz Jr. ensured that both Toro Rosso drivers were inside the top 10 as he placed ninth, just ahead of Williams’ Felipe Massa.
Fernando Alonso was 11th for McLaren, ahead of Romain Grosjean, who sat out the bulk of the session after the rear bodywork detached from his Lotus E23 Hybrid in spectacular fashion.
Huge parts of the car flew off as the Frenchman drove down the pit straight and the session had to be stopped briefly while the debris was removed.
Daniel Ricciardo had a difficult day as he completed only a handful of laps on his way to 13th place.
Having run an old engine in the morning, his Red Bull required a power unit change, meaning Ricciardo only joined the action with five minutes remaining.
Pastor Maldonado was 14th quickest, ahead of Sauber duo Felipe Nasr and Marcus Ericsson.
Force India had a lowly session as Nico Hülkenberg was 17th quickest, a tenth of a second clear of team-mate Sergio Pérez.
Will Stevens and Roberto Merhi finished significantly behind their nearest rivals, with Stevens running off track at Turn 5 late in the session.
| Position | Number | Driver | Team | Time | Gap | Laps |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 44 | Lewis Hamilton | Mercedes | 1:26.852s | 26 | |
| 2 | 5 | Sebastian Vettel | Ferrari | 1:27.260s | +0.408s | 37 |
| 3 | 6 | Nico Rosberg | Mercedes | 1:27.616s | +0.764s | 35 |
| 4 | 7 | Kimi Räikkönen | Ferrari | 1:27.780s | +0.928s | 36 |
| 5 | 26 | Daniil Kvyat | Red Bull | 1:27.943s | +1.091s | 25 |
| 6 | 33 | Max Verstappen | Toro Rosso | 1:28.017s | +1.165s | 32 |
| 7 | 22 | Jenson Button | McLaren | 1:28.494s | +1.642s | 31 |
| 8 | 77 | Valtteri Bottas | Williams | 1:28.525s | +1.673s | 39 |
| 9 | 55 | Carlos Sainz | Toro Rosso | 1:28.674s | +1.822s | 31 |
| 10 | 19 | Felipe Massa | Williams | 1:28.712s | +1.86s | 36 |
| 11 | 14 | Fernando Alonso | McLaren | 1:28.723s | +1.871s | 28 |
| 12 | 8 | Romain Grosjean | Lotus | 1:29.086s | +2.234s | 14 |
| 13 | 3 | Daniel Ricciardo | Red Bull | 1:29.098s | +2.246s | 4 |
| 14 | 13 | Pastor Maldonado | Lotus | 1:29.217s | +2.365s | 34 |
| 15 | 12 | Felipe Nasr | Sauber | 1:29.333s | +2.481s | 37 |
| 16 | 9 | Marcus Ericsson | Sauber | 1:29.361s | +2.509s | 34 |
| 17 | 27 | Nico Hulkenberg | Force India | 1:29.601s | +2.749s | 38 |
| 18 | 11 | Sergio Perez | Force India | 1:29.707s | +2.855s | 35 |
| 19 | 28 | Will Stevens | Marussia | 1:31.929s | +5.077s | 30 |
| 20 | 98 | Roberto Merhi | Marussia | 1:32.751s | +5.899s | 2 |
