McLaren looked mighty at Zandvoort as the Formula 1 field got back to work after their summer break, with Lando Norris setting the pace in both practice sessions for the Dutch Grand Prix. But they didn’t have it all their own way as there was a thorn in their side in FP2 \u2013 and it wasn’t someone you may expect…<\/p>\n
McLaren pick up where they left off with supreme Friday<\/p>\n
McLaren<\/a> hold a commanding position in the Teams’ Championship<\/a>, leading the next best squad by 299 points in the standings heading to the Netherlands<\/a>.<\/p>\n If they continue on their current trajectory, simulations suggest they could defend the crown as early as the Azerbaijan Grand Prix.<\/p>\n Their performance on Friday gave no hint that they won’t stay on that course as both Lando Norris<\/a> and Oscar Piastri<\/a> demonstrated immense pace.<\/p>\n Our data puts them top of the pile in Qualifying, with an advantage of 0.15s \u2013 though talk to some in the paddock and they reckon it’s a greater margin. When it comes to long runs, their advantage swells to 0.23s over Mercedes<\/a>, with a further 0.1s lead over Red Bull<\/a>.<\/p>\n They are fastest through all of the corner types, and while they trail Aston Martin<\/a> on the straights, they are competitive relative to their three closest rivals Mercedes, Red Bull and Ferrari<\/a>.<\/p>\n As a result, they are favourites for pole and the win, with Norris \u2013 winner of three of the last four Grands Prix \u2013 the very marginal favourite heading into Saturday.<\/p>\n Aston Martin cause a stir as Fernando Alonso stars<\/p>\n Fernando Alonso<\/a> doesn’t get carried away by performance on Friday, but he let that approach slip just a little in the Netherlands after finishing a sensational second in the practice standings<\/a>, just 0.087s adrift of the leading pace.<\/p>\n “[I’m] for sure a little bit more optimistic than some of the other Fridays we did,” said the Aston Martin racer. “I don’t think it’s within our reach to fight with the McLarens [which the double World Champion split in FP2] but maybe some of the top teams.<\/p>\n “Mercedes, Ferrari, Red Bull \u2013 they seem not too far away so we will try to be in that mix.”<\/p>\n To say there is the potential to go up against the three teams fighting for P2 is punchy stuff \u2013 and is intriguing, as Alonso doesn’t tend to make these claims lightly.<\/p>\n His team mate Lance Stroll<\/a> was optimistic, too, the Canadian quick in FP1 before crashing<\/a> \u2013 and escaping unhurt \u2013 in the second session.<\/p>\n But it’s perhaps not as good as it looks. The data puts them fifth overall in the pecking order, still three-tenths quicker than their chief rivals for P5 in the Teams’ Championship in both metrics but a bit off the likes of Mercedes, Red Bull and Ferrari.<\/p>\n They have a significant advantage on the straights, to suggest they were either running lower on fuel or a lower drag configuration \u2013 or a combination of the two.<\/p>\n Either way, this is looking like a second successive weekend where Aston Martin are back at the races and in the fight to be top of the midfield.<\/p>\n Mercedes hold the edge in fight for P2 in the Teams’ standings<\/p>\n Ferrari sit P2 in the Teams’ Championship but it was Mercedes who looked like the stronger threat to McLaren, according to our data.<\/p>\n The Silver Arrows were second in both our Qualifying and race simulations, with George Russell<\/a> saying he “felt good out there”.<\/p>\n The Briton admitted he was “not quite as close to the front as we’d like”<\/a> but the “race pace looks okay”. They are around 0.1s quicker than Red Bull in race trim and a fraction more ahead of Ferrari. That suggests it’s going to be a tight fight come Sunday \u2013 rain or shine.<\/p>\n Reigning World Champion Max Verstappen<\/a> came into the weekend admitting the win would be tricky \u2013 but still dreaming of a podium. But after practice, he revised that prediction<\/a>, saying: “I think it will be hard enough to be in the top five”.<\/p>\n Verstappen said the team were “still struggling with the same things and again we tried a lot of things with the car”. It was more encouraging for team mate Yuki Tsunoda<\/a>, though, with the Japanese driver looking much more comfortable behind the wheel and closer to Verstappen across both short and long runs.<\/p>\n Over at Ferrari, Charles Leclerc<\/a> said it had been a “very, very, very difficult Friday \u2013 probably the worst Friday of the season<\/a>, so it’s a bit of a wake-up call”. But he countered with the fact they have had tough Fridays before and rebounded into the weekend.<\/p>\n