2016 British Grand Prix

Championship standings

Rosberg leads Hamilton by 11 points — 153 to 142. Vettel and Räikkönen are tied in third with 96 points each, ahead of Ricciardo with 88.

Previous race

Hamilton won Austria after colliding with Rosberg on the final lap. Rosberg, defending inside, turned in late and made contact, breaking his front wing and dropping to fourth behind Verstappen and Räikkönen. The stewards handed Rosberg a ten-second time penalty for an avoidable collision — the second major collision between the two Mercedes drivers in five races. It was Hamilton’s 250th victory by a British driver in Formula One.

Between-race developments

Following a second collision in five races, Mercedes has introduced a new driver management policy dictating the terms under which Hamilton and Rosberg may race one another, with penalties promised for further on-track incidents.

Tyres

Pirelli provides the three hardest compounds available: hard, medium and soft.

Practice

FP1: Hamilton was fastest (1:31.654), less than a tenth ahead of Rosberg. Hülkenberg and Vettel were the only other drivers within one second of the Mercedes. Charles Leclerc made his first practice appearance with Haas, taking over Gutiérrez’s car. Esteban Ocon drove for Renault in place of Magnussen. Vettel conducted a test run with an updated version of Ferrari’s “halo” cockpit protection device, describing it as “not great” due to its impact on visibility.

FP2: Hamilton again fastest (1:31.660), this time over three-tenths clear of Ricciardo in second. Rosberg did not participate due to a water leak on his car. McLaren had a mixed session at their home race: Alonso placed a good sixth, but Button had to stop for repairs twice before returning late in the session.

FP3: Hamilton completed a clean sweep of fastest times (1:30.904), edging Rosberg by a tenth. The session started wet after a pre-session rain shower and was interrupted when Marcus Ericsson crashed heavily at the exit of Stowe corner. Lengthy barrier repairs left only five minutes when running resumed; Ericsson’s car required a new survival cell and he will need to start from the pit lane. Vettel’s gearbox also failed towards the end of the session — both Ericsson and Vettel receive five-place grid penalties as a result.

Milestones

This is Silverstone’s 50th World Championship race since the Formula One series began in 1950.