Report & Results First Free Practice 2025 British F1 GP

Event: British F1 Grand Prix
Track: Silverstone circuit

Weather: dry  23°C
Tarmac: dry  41°C
Humidity : 40.0%
Wind: 11.8 km/h South-West
Pressure: 1008 mb

Hamilton Tops Tricky FP1 as British Grand Prix Weekend Roars to Life at Silverstone

The 2025 British Grand Prix weekend is officially underway, and FP1 gave fans exactly what they came for: a fierce fight at the front, unpredictable winds, home heroes showing their muscle, and even a few dramatic spins at the ever-notorious Copse corner.

Let’s break down all the action from the opening session of Round 12 in what’s shaping up to be one of the most thrilling F1 seasons in years.

Hamilton Strikes First at His Fortress

Lewis Hamilton – nine-time winner at Silverstone and widely considered "Mr. Silverstone" – kicked off his home Grand Prix weekend in the best possible way. The seven-time world champion lit up the timing screens with a 1m26.892s to go fastest of all, narrowly edging out Lando Norris by just 0.023s.

That lap wasn’t just fast; it was a message. Ferrari’s upgrades, including the new floor brought in Austria, are working. And Hamilton? He looks ready to add a tenth home win to his glittering resume.

Norris & Piastri Shadow the Silverstone King

Fresh off a dominant win in Austria, Lando Norris is chasing his maiden home victory, and he looks hungry for it. He matched Hamilton for pace throughout the session and beat teammate Oscar Piastri again—just as he did in every session last weekend.

Piastri, who currently leads the Drivers’ Championship by 15 points over Norris, was third quickest. The Aussie kept it clean and consistent, but his teammate has had the upper hand in recent head-to-heads. If Piastri wants to stop Norris’ momentum, he’ll need to respond quickly—especially with qualifying looming.

Ferrari Looking Strong, Red Bull Searching for Answers

Ferrari not only had Hamilton topping the times, but Charles Leclerc slotted into P4 and George Russell made it three Ferraris in the top five thanks to his customer power unit in the second works car.

Meanwhile, it was another sluggish Friday for Red Bull. Verstappen, still under scrutiny over those lingering 2026 Mercedes rumours, complained about poor rotation on team radio and ended FP1 in P10. Only he is running Red Bull’s new floor this weekend, and it didn’t look like it brought the magic.

Verstappen’s frustrations were audible. “The car doesn’t turn,” he radioed, summing up Red Bull’s situation in one sentence.

Racing Bulls Surprising, Williams Out of Sync

Liam Lawson and Isack Hadjar brought some unexpected firepower for Racing Bulls, both cracking the top 10 early. In fact, Hadjar even led briefly on medium tyres. That special-edition Silverstone livery may not have added horsepower, but the team looked sharp.

Williams, meanwhile, opted to run out of sync with the rest of the field. Alex Albon waited until late in the session to bolt on the softs and climbed to seventh. Rookie Franco Colapinto, meanwhile, was mired in traffic and couldn't show his true pace.

Carlos Sainz, interestingly, spent much of the session on hard tyres and only emerged on softs in the final 10 minutes. His car was also up on stands earlier for suspected floor damage after running wide.

Copse Claims Victims: Gasly, Bortoleto, Stroll Spin

The always-demanding Copse corner was a minefield in FP1. Pierre Gasly, Gabriel Bortoleto, and Lance Stroll all spun at the high-speed right-hander. Gasly and Bortoleto both found themselves looping spectacularly after catching too much kerb and wind. Fortunately, no damage was reported, but there were flat spots aplenty.

The gusty conditions certainly played a part, with even Fernando Alonso wobbling under braking at Turn 6. The wind combined with harder tyres this weekend (Pirelli brought the C2–C4 range) means grip is at a premium—and overstepping the limit is easily done.

Rookies and Returnees: Lindblad and Aron Impress

Seventeen-year-old Arvid Lindblad made his FP1 debut for Racing Bulls, replacing Yuki Tsunoda. Paul Aron also got seat time for Kick Sauber, subbing in for Nico Hülkenberg. Both kept it clean and completed over 20 laps each, with Aron finishing ahead of his more experienced teammate.

Lindblad had a minor run-in with traffic, frustrating Lawson during one of the latter’s push laps. But overall, both rookies performed admirably on one of F1’s most unforgiving circuits.

Tyre Strategies & Traffic Games Begin

Soft tyres became the tyre of choice midway through the session, but not everyone ran the same programme. Ferrari, McLaren, and Red Bull all went for short-run performance data, while others like Aston Martin focused on race simulations with heavier fuel loads.

Still, traffic was an issue. With drivers on different compounds and fuel levels, several had to abort flying laps or voiced frustration over slower cars in the way—Hadjar and Aron among them.

The Weather May Yet Stir the Pot

Though Friday was sunny and warm, the rest of the weekend remains unpredictable. Cooler temps and possible showers could mix things up dramatically, especially in qualifying. Mercedes, who excel in cooler conditions, will be watching the clouds with interest.

And don’t count out young guns like Kimi Antonelli and Ollie Bearman, both in the midfield mix and capable of springing a surprise—especially if rain throws the form book out the window.

What’s Next?

The drivers now head into debriefs, with plenty of data to crunch—especially for Red Bull and Aston Martin, who appear to be on the back foot. FP2 kicks off at 16:00 local time, and all eyes will be on whether Hamilton can repeat his FP1 magic, or if McLaren will strike back.

With the Championship leader, the home favourite, and the most successful Silverstone driver all within two-tenths, this is building into a classic British Grand Prix weekend.

Don't go anywhere—Silverstone is just getting warmed up.

FP1 Times Table 2025 British GP

The quickest sector times during this FP1 where:

1. 28.059 sec. by Alex Albon, Williams FW47.
2. 34.853 sec. by Charles Leclerc, Ferrar SF25.
3. 23.654 sec. by Lando Norris, McLaren MCL39.

Last year the quickest lap time of FP1 was a 1:27,420 min, driven by Lando Norris with the McLaren MCL38.

✅ Check out our 2025 British Formula 1 Grand Prix Preview.

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