Ferrari tend to like to keep their powder dry during Friday practice sessions. But at Silverstone they hit the ground running, with Sebastian Vettel topping FP2, nearly two-tenths up on the Mercedes of Lewis Hamilton. And Vettel was clear that he was keen to end the Silver Arrows’ run of dominance at the Northamptonshire circuit.

Asked what his approach to taking on Mercedes was this weekend, Vettel replied: “We try to kill their magic.

“Obviously that’s what we have tried over the last years and I think here and there we have succeeded quite well. It’s true that they are very strong around here and we expect them to be very strong tomorrow, but I hope we can be there and I hope we can be close – that would be very good news.”