2013 British Grand Prix

Championship standings

Sebastian Vettel leads the Drivers’ Championship with 132 points, ahead of Fernando Alonso (96) and Kimi Räikkönen (88). Lewis Hamilton is fourth with 77 points and Mark Webber fifth with 69. Red Bull leads the Constructors’ Championship with 201 points; Ferrari and Mercedes are second and third with 145 and 134, respectively. Lotus are fourth on 114, Force India fifth on 51.

Previous race

Sebastian Vettel won in Canada from Alonso, 14 seconds clear at the flag. It was Vettel’s third victory of the season. The race was marred by the death of trackside marshal Mark Robinson, who was struck by a recovery vehicle while marshals were removing Esteban Gutiérrez’s car after the Mexican had spun off late in the race. Robinson became the first trackside fatality in Formula One since marshal Graham Beveridge at the 2001 Australian Grand Prix.

Between-race developments

Following a post-qualifying incident at the previous race, Giedo van der Garde receives a five-place grid penalty for colliding with Nico Hülkenberg in Canada.

A mid-season test will take place at Silverstone three weeks after this race. The Mercedes team has been excluded from that test after the FIA International Tribunal concluded that they broke regulations by running their 2013 car in a private tyre test with Pirelli at the Circuit de Catalunya. The tribunal’s ruling confirmed the complaint raised by Ferrari and Red Bull ahead of the Monaco Grand Prix.

Car upgrades

Ferrari introduces a new rear wing with a modified endplate slot on the F138. Mercedes installs a cable-free thermal sensor on the W04’s front wing to monitor front-tyre temperatures. Lotus fits a double-DRS system to Räikkönen’s E21 for the first time in a race — having evaluated it during practice sessions in 2012 and the 2013 pre-season test — and also introduces a new front wing, revised suspension, and multiple aerodynamic upgrades.

Tyre choices

Pirelli brings the medium and hard dry compounds, plus intermediates and full wets.

Practice

The first session was held in wet conditions, water streams crossing several corners. No driver attempted a timed lap for the first 75 minutes as teams kept their cars in the garage. Daniel Ricciardo set the fastest lap; Charles Pic lost control of his Caterham and hit the barrier at Club, removing the front wing.

Conditions improved for the second session as rain eased. Nico Rosberg set the day’s fastest lap. Felipe Massa was limited to seven laps after losing the rear of his Ferrari on a damp section at Stowe, damaging the front suspension. After the session, Lewis Hamilton received a reprimand for failing to comply with instructions on pit lane entry — his first reprimand of the season.

The final session ran in clear, warmer weather. Rosberg was again fastest. Sergio Pérez suffered a left-front tyre puncture at the exit of Copse caused by an unidentified object cutting the sidewall, also damaging his car’s floor. The session was briefly red-flagged to clear the debris; Pérez returned for the final ten minutes but spun backwards at Becketts.