Spanish F1 Grand Prix 2018 Qualifying: Lewis Hamilton Tops 2nd Practice

Mercedes drove to a double success in Friday's Spanish Grand Prix practice after world champion Lewis Hamilton recorded the fastest time in the second session to follow up team-mate Valtteri Bottas' earlier success in FP1.

Hamilton edged Daniel Ricciardo with a top time of one minute and 18.259 seconds, and the latter's Red Bull team-mate Max Verstappen completed the top finishers in third, just ahead of Ferrari's Sebastian Vettel.

Second practice ended early for Vettel's comrade, Kimi Raikkonen, however, after engine troubles put a stop to his day, but Ferrari may have saved their best for Saturday's qualifying sessions.

Red Bull's Ricciardo had a testing first practice session and lost control of his car after some oversteer to crash out. Vettel and Raikkonen were third and fourth for Ferrari, respectively, as Bottas topped the early-session times.

Read on for the latest from the Circuit de Cataluyna as the drivers prepare for what will be a crucial weekend in the 2018 season.

FP2 Recap

Bottas simmered in FP2 and failed to trouble the fastest contenders as he finished only sixth-fastest, but Hamilton picked up his performance to ensure the momentum remained in Mercedes' grasp heading into Saturday.

The official Formula 1 Twitter account provided a breakdown of the classification for Friday's second practice, where the reigning champion beat closest rival Ricciardo by little more than a tenth of a second:

Hamilton won his second Spanish Grand Prix in 2017 and will seek successive titles in Catalunya for the first time on Sunday, although there was suggestions that indecision over tyre choice may have impacted lap times.

The super softs in particular didn't work as well as expected, with Verstappen ending behind Ricciardo despite switching to that tyre earlier in practice.

After colliding with one another to end both their races at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, Ricciardo and Verstappen at least appear to be getting along again on and off the track:

Vettel has taken pole position ahead of the last three races this season but will need a considerable boost in output on Saturday if he's to make it four in a row.

The weekend is in a state of concern for Ferrari, too, based on Raikkonen's end to second practice after only 16 laps:

Haas driver Romain Grosjean spun off the track at one stage but recovered to finish seventh-fastest in Catalunya, while McLaren's Fernando Alonso tested the medium tyres and super softs before he ended in 12th.

It's difficult to gauge where the drivers sit in the power rankings after the conditions played their part in Friday's practice, but the stakes will be a lot higher as qualifying gets underway on Saturday. 

FP1 Recap

Here is a look at how the standings were shaping up after the early session on Friday:

Bottas had such bad luck in the previous race in Azerbaijan, as a late puncture cost him what would have been a straightforward victory late on. However, there was little sign of the Finn feeling sorry for himself in Barcelona.

As the wind whipped around the track, he coped with the elements better than anyone else, with his time of 1:18.148 comfortably the quickest of the session.

Hamilton, who benefitted from Bottas' misfortune to win a week ago, was almost a second slower than his fellow Mercedes man.

The team Twitter account commented on how much quicker the drivers were going this year than 12 months ago:

For Ricciardo, it was a morning to forget, as his Red Bull went into the wall after an error early in the session.

The Australian lost control after some oversteer into Turn 4, and it didn't end well:

Elsewhere, the Red Bulls weren't exactly blasting around the Barcelona track, as noted by Andrew Benson of BBC Sport:

There was a memorable moment in the morning runs, as Robert Kubica returned to Formula One for the first time since 2010. He's not been behind a wheel in the sport since a rally accident left him with limited movement in his right arm in 2011.

He stepped in as Williams' development and reserve driver on Friday and steered the car to 19th in FP1.