It looked like things couldn't have been much easier for Max Verstappen in Friday's practice, as he led FP1 by half a second from his Red Bull team mate Sergio Perez and pipped Ferrari's Carlos Sainz to the top in FP2.
But as smooth as things had looked for Verstappen, he admitted that he was worried about the outlook for the rest of the weekend where the weather is set to be rather more changeable - and crucially, with rain expected.
"Overall the performance has been strong in both sessions and our long runs looked good as well, so it was pretty positive," he reported after the end of the two one-hour sessions today. “I think it was quite a good day for us.
"It was quite slippery in the beginning which was due to the high pressures we are running on these tyres," he noted. "Of course, that is the same for everyone, but it makes it a bit more difficult in the low speed.
"I think in general the car has been performing really well so we can be happy with that," he suggested. "From outside we want to improve the car a little bit, but overall it's been a strong day again.
However, he added a note of caution about the conditions. "Let's see tomorrow, of course, with the weather."
His team mate Sergio Perez was also feeling pretty upbeat. he was second quickest in first practice albeit half a second behind Verstappen, and dropped to fourth in the late afternoon session.
“I am pleased with how the sessions went," he insisted. "We’ve spent a lot of time looking at the tyres today. The most important thing is to assess the data, learn from it and see where and how is best to use that information tomorrow.
"I think we are looking good for qualifying and for the race," he said. "It has been a positive Friday overall, the car is feeling good and we made some positive progress from FP1 to FP2.
"There is still a lot of work to be done overnight but hopefully tomorrow we can make another step in the right direction," he continued. "It's gonna be a long night tonight trying to figure out where is the best to operate these tyres.
"Making sure that we we have the right out lap is very critical here," he added. "I think we are able to manage that and we're looking good for qualifying and similarly for the race.
The surprise of the day had been the strong performance of the Williams car. More often seen at the other end of the grid, Alex Albon was P3 in both of Friday's sessions, and Logan Sargeant finished the day fifth.
“Super impressive - and not just Alex, both the guys,” Red Bull team principal Christian Horner said of the Williams effort today when interviewed by Sky Sports F1 afterward.
“Proper, proper laps; not just one lap. I mean, their long runs look pretty sensible as well," he acknowledged. “Based on that pace, they would be a factor in the group behind.”
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