25/05/2017
NEWS STORY
Lewis Hamilton topped the morning session with Valtteri Bottas 0.366s shy in P4. Lewis ended the day with the eighth fastest time in the afternoon session, with Valtteri 10th quickest.
Lewis Hamilton: We didn't have the greatest day today. Practice one was actually really good and we were quickest, but then in second practice we just struggled to extract the grip from the tyres and we were sliding around a lot. I'm not sure why the tyres weren't working but the difference between the two sessions was night and day. We've got some work to do ahead of Saturday that's for sure but I'm confident the team can work it out. Monaco is always amazing to drive, but this is definitely the best car I've driven around here. Ferrari are very quick again and Red Bull are also looking good this weekend. We're looking forward to a real fight on Saturday.
Valtteri Bottas: Practice two was difficult and we struggled with the pace over one lap. We made some changes between practice one and practice two but we clearly went in the wrong direction - that's why both of us were struggling. When the car isn't quite right you lose a lot of time in Monaco. We tried to go back with the set-up and it felt better but by that point we'd already put a lot of laps into the tyres. At least we've learned what not to do with the set-up here. It's a shame but we have a full day tomorrow to analyse everything and come back stronger on Saturday. It will be close again at the top I'm sure.
James Allison, Technical Director: After a very positive morning session with both cars and drivers, the afternoon proved more difficult and we clearly took a step in the wrong direction with the car set-up over the break. We will have a good think about it tomorrow in order to put things right for Saturday. But I think we can be encouraged by the pace and consistency that we were able to demonstrate in FP1.
Check out our Thursday gallery from Monaco, here.