F1 News, Reports and Race Results

Vettel untroubled by gap with Mercedes

Sebastian Vettel ended Friday with a sizeable deficit to front-runner Lewis Hamilton's Mercedes, but says he is confident he "can do something" to challenge the leading Silver Arrows.

The Ferrari driver was Hamilton's closest rival on Pirelli's ultra-soft compound, but at a fair distance unfortunately with a 0.547s gap.

But the German is optimistic that more speed shall be extracted from his SF70H before tomorrow's running gets underway.

"Overall [the first day has] been OK, but we had some small troubles during first practice, which cost us some track time, so ,it took a bit longer to get into the groove," Vettel said.

"My car doesn't feel as good as it should or can, so I'm confident we can do something."

Hamilton enjoys Friday clean sweep!

In reference once again to Ferrari's pre-season testing form and Lewis Hamilton's claims that he was playing his cards close to his chest, Vettel discarded any rival chatter.

"Obviously we've been very happy at testing, times look good, but it doesn't mean anything when you come here and that's when it matters, I think we were realistic about that.

"As I said today was OK, I think the car feels good. It hasn't changed much, I mean it's only two weeks ago we got out of the car but it's good to be back here and as I said we can still improve."

GALLERY: all the pics from Friday's action

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Phillip van Osten

Motor racing was a backdrop from the outset in Phillip van Osten's life. Born in Southern California, Phillip grew up with the sights and sounds of fast cars thanks to his father, Dick van Osten, an editor and writer for Auto Speed and Sport and Motor Trend. Phillip's passion for racing grew even more when his family moved to Europe and he became acquainted with the extraordinary world of Grand Prix racing. He was an early contributor to the monthly French F1i Magazine, often providing a historic or business perspective on Formula 1's affairs. In 2012, he co-authored along with fellow journalist Pierre Van Vliet the English-language adaptation of a limited edition book devoted to the great Belgian driver Jacky Ickx. He also authored "The American Legacy in Formula 1", a book which recounts the trials and tribulations of American drivers in Grand Prix racing. Phillip is also a commentator for Belgian broadcaster Be.TV for the US Indycar series.