Motor Sport: Lewis Hamilton opened what he hopes will be the greatest weekend of his career so far with the highly competitive lap time of one minute 21.1 seconds in the first practice session for tomorrow's British grand prix, a race he is aiming to win for the McLaren-Mercedes team at his first attempt.
The 22-year-old comes to his home grand prix determined to display the dominant form that earned him a decisive victory in the GP2 race that supported last year's round of the world championship, a success that dramatically endorsed his candidature for promotion.
But Hamilton knows only too well that tackling Silverstone at the wheel of a 740-horsepower formula one car - rather than a 600-horsepower GP2 Dallara - will be a particularly exacting business, with the blustery crosswinds and the wide variety of corners that abound at this one-time RAF base.
There is also the strong likelihood of his McLaren being overwhelmed on the 3.2-mile track by the Ferraris of Kimi Raikkonen and Felipe Massa after they dominated last Sunday's French grand prix in which Hamilton finished third.
By the end of yesterday's second 90-minute practice session, Raikkonen and Massa had established themselves at the top of the timing sheets in first and second positions, emphasising that their excellent form in testing last month at the Northamptonshire circuit was no flash in the pan.
Yet Hamilton, who after a blustery session finished the session fourth behind Ralf Schumacher's Toyota and two places ahead of his McLaren-Mercedes team-mate Fernando Alonso, still felt guardedly confident he will be competitive in today's qualifying battle.
"The weekend last year with GP2 was something I will never forget," Hamilton said. "The response from the crowd was like nothing I had ever experienced and I just couldn't wait to get back on to the track. Silverstone is very different to Magny-Cours due to all the high-speed corners. It still needs a set-up compromise to make sure we have high-speed stability for the first section and grip to the latter part through the slower corners, such as Priory and Brooklands. To win at this race would be immense, but we have to be realistic about our expectations."
Alonso, who goes into the race trailing his team-mate by 14 points, believes this could be the race in which the championship initiative begins to swing back in his favour at the circuit where he won 12 months ago for Renault. "That race was very competitive and tough, but that's always the way with Silverstone," he said. "Because of all the speed, the car needs to have a good handling balance, and the track is quite bumpy in places."
Jenson Button sat out the session after a repetition of the back problem that was caused by his first-corner collision in the US Grand Prix at Indianapolis, while David Coulthard posted the 14th fastest time to celebrate the renewal of his Red Bull contract for 2008.
Meanwhile, it would not be British Grand Prix time without Bernie Ecclestone warning the owners of Silverstone they will lose their race after 2009 unless the circuit is upgraded for the future.
Silverstone's contract runs out the year after next and the commercial rights holder is demanding improvements to the pits and paddock.
With the introduction next year of Valencia and Singapore as grands prix venues and other races, including Abu Dhabi in 2009, to become part of the calendar, Silverstone is under pressure to act on Ecclestone's requirements. When asked what would happen if Silverstone's owners, the British Racing Drivers' Club, failed to upgrade the circuit to his satisfaction, Ecclestone replied: "We won't be here. They know, they've known for five or six years, exactly what we want." Guardian Service
Driver's Standings
1. Lewis Hamilton (Brit) McLaren 64
2. Fernando Alonso (Spn) McLaren 50
3. Felipe Massa (Bra) Ferrari 47
4. Kimi Raikkonen (Fin) Ferrari 42
5. Nick Heidfeld (Ger) BMW Sauber 30
6. Robert Kubica (Pol) BMW Sauber 17
7. Giancarlo Fisichella (Ita) Renault 16
8. Heikki Kovalainen (Fin) Renault 12
9. Alexander Wurz (Aust) Williams 8
10. Jarno Trulli (Ita) Toyota 7
11. Nico Rosberg (Ger) Williams 5
12. David Coulthard (Brit) Red Bull 4
13. Takuma Sato (Jap) Super Aguri 4
14. Mark Webber (Aus) Red Bull 2
15. Ralf Schumacher (Ger) Toyota 2
16. Jenson Button (Brit) Honda
Constructor's Standings
1. McLaren-Mercedes 114
2. Ferrari 89
3. BMW Sauber 48
4. Renault 28
5. Williams - Toyota 13
6. Toyota 9
7. RedBull-Renault 6
8. Super Aguri-Honda 4
9. Honda 1
10. Toro Rosso - Ferrari 0
11. Spyker - Ferrari 0
