Nine-time British Grand Prix winner Lewis Hamilton gave Ferrari the perfect start to the team’s Silverstone weekend by topping the only practice session ahead of Sprint Qualifying, producing a late flyer that left the home fans with plenty to cheer about.
The seven-time world champion posted a best lap of 1m29.260s on the soft tyres, edging championship leader Kimi Antonelli by 0.213s after a fiercely competitive hour of running.
With just a single practice session available during the sprint weekend, teams wasted no time heading onto the circuit. Most drivers began on the hard compound, keen to gather as much data as possible while fuel loads steadily reduced and the scorching 49°C track temperature continued to evolve.
The timing screens changed almost every lap during the opening stages as drivers traded fastest times.
At the halfway point, Antonelli led the way for Mercedes with a 1m30.777s, narrowly ahead of Red Bull's Isack Hadjar and teammate George Russell.
The early order was hardly surprising given Silverstone's emphasis on straight-line speed under Formula 1's revised power regulations, although the lap times remained around four seconds slower than Hamilton's benchmark from last year's opening practice as teams continue adapting to measures designed to reduce superclipping.
Hamilton briefly moved Ferrari to the top on the hard tyres with a 1m30.521s, just as Oscar Piastri suffered a harmless spin between Becketts and Chapel with 25 minutes remaining.
The session truly came alive during the final 10 minutes when the field switched to soft tyres for qualifying simulations.
Mercedes initially looked set to dominate, with Antonelli becoming the first driver to dip below the 1m30s barrier on a 1m29.473s, comfortably ahead of Russell.
Hamilton, however, had the final say.
The Ferrari driver produced a superb lap with six minutes remaining to move to the top, and despite several late improvements elsewhere, nobody managed to dislodge him. Antonelli remained in the Mercedes garage for the closing stages, leaving Hamilton's benchmark untouched.
Charles Leclerc climbed to third late in the session with a 1m29.859s, finishing just ahead of Russell, who settled for fourth on 1m29.938s.
Piastri recovered from his earlier spin to complete the top five, ahead of Max Verstappen, while McLaren teammate Lando Norris finished seventh.
Hadjar claimed eighth, with Audi's Nico Hulkenberg impressing in ninth on the medium compound, ahead of Racing Bulls driver Liam Lawson, who rounded out the top 10.
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