F1: Rosberg Quick in Italy; Paces Monza Practice Ahead of Teammate Hamilton

RaceChaser Staff Featured, Formula One, International, Sprints & Midgets 0 Comments

MONZA, Italy – official release — Mercedes photo — Nico Rosberg led Lewis Hamilton by 0.061 seconds for a Mercedes one-two in Friday’s second practice for Sunday’s Formula One Italian Grand Prix.

The German had an uneventful practice, but the same couldn’t be said for Hamilton. He faced an electrical problem which prevented the power unit in his car from firing up, and left him unable to join the field until the final 25 minutes.

The Briton posted a one-minute, 26.286-second lap to the 1:26.225-second lap Rosberg completed to pace the session.

“It seems that we are quick on one lap but on the long run the others were very fast,” Rosberg said.

“I didn’t feel 100 percent confident in the car, so I can’t be happy with today and I have a lot of work to do tonight with the boys. It’s really great to be back on such a traditional track here at Monza with all the history. Now being here with this quick Silver Arrow makes it very special for me. The fans are very enthusiastic as always and also very kind to us. I’m really looking forward to the weekend.”

Ferrari’s Kimi Raikkonen was third, just 0.106 seconds off Rosberg while teammate Fernando Alonso was fourth in Ferrari’s home grand prix.

Williams had a better time in FP2 than they did in FP1, with Valtteri Bottas fifth  and Felipe Massa ninth. Jenson Button and Kevin Magnussen continued to show competitive pace in their McLarens with the sixth- and eighth-fastest times.

Sebastian Vettel paced Red Bull in seventh, as Daniel Ricciardo recovered from his problems in FP1 and was 10th.

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