Austrian GP P2: Sebastian Vettel fastest before problems strike

Sebastian Vettel was fastest in second practice for the Austrian GP on Friday afternoon before a gearbox problem struck down his Ferrari for the second time in as many sessions.

Vettel lapped the 4.326km Red Bull Ring in a time of 1:09.600s to go just 0.011s faster than morning pacesetter Nico Rosberg.

However, a gearbox glitch - following the transmission problem which struck down the four-time champion in P1 - meant he was unable to complete his programme.

Team-mate Kimi Raikkonen was third fastest and if - reliability aside - the session was an encouraging one for Ferrari, that seemed even more the case for Lotus, with Pastor Maldonado fourth overall.

That did not seem the case for Lewis Hamilton, however. The world champion was about 0.3s slower than Rosberg in P1 and the gap was even wider in the afternoon, with Hamilton 0.537s down on Vettel.

Both Hamilton's attempts at qualifying practice runs on supersoft tyres ended with him running off the track and he returned to the Mercedes garage soon afterwards, shaking his head as he talked to his engineer.

He sounded confident afterwards, though, telling Sky Sports F1: "On the lap I was on, I was fourth-tenths up on Nico. I'm happy with it. There isn't much to change."

So can Ferrari pose a challenge this weekend? Their one-lap pace suggests as much, although Mercedes tend to find performance heading into the weekend.

Meanwhile, Raikkonen’s long-run pace on the soft tyre averaged at 0.2s per lap quicker than that managed by Rosberg.

Le Mans winner Nico Hulkenberg was sixth fastest in his Force India, with the top 10 completed by Romain Grosjean (Lotus), Max Verstappen (Toro Rosso), Felipe Nasr (Sauber) and Sergio Perez (Force India).

Williams are expected to challenge for a podium place this weekend but their drivers were, surprisingly, down the order.

Valtteri Bottas - third in Austria last year - was 14th ahead of team-mate Felipe Massa, although neither driver ran the supersoft tyre.    

At Red Bull's home race - and with engine penalties to be issued for both drivers - Daniil Kvyat and Daniel Ricciardo were 12th and 17th respectively.

The Australian’s 10-place grid penalty has already been confirmed and at a track hardly suited to their Renault-powered RB11, his fastest lap also came on the prime tyre.

That was also the case for McLaren-Honda’s drivers. It was another tough outing for them, with Fernando Alonso 16th fastest and Jenson Button 18th, but with neither driver able to complete the 90 minutes.

Button’s session was brought to an early halt after his car suffered a loss of power, with the team then deciding that Alonso should play no further part as a precaution.

The Spaniard is already in receipt of a 20-place grid penalty this weekend after his car was fitted with new engine elements and the team say it is likely that Button will follow suit – two weeks after he was forced to do the same in Canada.

Button ended the session just 0.6s faster than the Manor of Will Stevens with his team-mate, Roberto Merhi, 20th and last.

Times:

1. S Vettel Ferrari 1:09.600

2. N Rosberg Mercedes 1:09.611

3. K Raikkonen Ferrari 1:09.860

4. P Maldonado Lotus 1:09.914

5. L Hamilton Mercedes 1:10.137

6. N Hulkenberg Force India 1:10.160

7. R Grosjean Lotus 1:10.267

8. M Verstappen Toro Rosso 1:10.356

9. F Nasr Sauber 1:10.495

10. S Perez Force India 1:10.585

11. C Sainz Toro Rosso 1:10.631

12. D Kvyat Red Bull 1:10.686

13. M Ericsson Sauber 1:10.744

14. V Bottas Williams 1:10.746

15. F Massa Williams 1:11.011

16. F Alonso McLaren 1:11.517

17. D Ricciardo Red Bull 1:11.676

18. J Button McLaren 1:11.919

19. W Stevens Manor 1:12.522

20. R Merhi Manor 1:13.094 

Don’t miss Sky Sports F1’s exclusively live coverage of the 2015 Austrian GP. The race begins at 1pm on Sunday, with build-up underway from 11.30am. No Sky Sports? No problem! Watch the Austrian GP for £6.99 with NOW TV