Hamilton fastest in early practices for Korean GP

LEWIS Hamilton kept championship leader Sebastian Vettel off the top of the timesheets in both practice sessions yesterday for the Korean Formula One Grand Prix.

But it was a terrible day for former world champion Kimi Raikkonen, who crashed his Lotus.

Hamilton lapped the Yeongam circuit, set against a backdrop of coastal marshes and South Korean shipyard cranes, with a best time of one minute 39.630 seconds in the morning and 1:38.673 after lunch.

“I feel like I have a bit of a better foundation this weekend. I can’t remember the last time I had a really strong Friday,” the Briton said.

Red Bull’s Vettel, chasing his fourth win in a row since the end of August and third in succession in Korea, was second quickest in both sessions run in bright sunshine and under cloudless skies. The German was just 0.037 slower in the first and 0.108 adrift in the second.

“I think it will be very close this weekend with Mercedes,” Vettel said at a news conference later.

On a quiet opening day, with largely empty stands at the track some three hours by express train south of Seoul, the biggest noise was provided by South Korean fighter jets roaring overhead in formation.

Raikkonen, who struggled with a bad back in Singapore two weeks ago, skidded hard into a tyre wall at the final corner in the closing seconds of the morning session but clambered out of the car without any apparent difficulty.

The 2007 champion clocked the eighth best times in both sessions.

Red Bull’s Mark Webber, who will have a 10-place grid penalty tomorrow after collecting his third reprimand of the season for a Singapore post-race “taxi ride” on Fernando Alonso’s Ferrari, was third and fourth respectively in the sessions.

Hamilton’s teammate, Nico Rosberg, reinforced the idea that the battle lines are drawn between Mercedes and Red Bull with the fourth and third best times.

Vettel is 60 points clear of Alonso, who was sixth and seventh respectively in practice, with six races remaining. That means Vettel has a fourth successive title within reach.

He was in a league of his own on the streets of Singapore and there were suspicions yesterday he was simply keeping his powder dry for tomorrow.

The 26-year-old will again be the favourite, although Mercedes could make life harder for him. – Reuters

Live coverage of the race will be broadcast from 7.30am tomorrow on SuperSport 6.