Lewis Hamilton sparks hope of first win with Dutch Grand Prix practice pace

The seven-time world champion appears to be right in the mix alongside the pace-setting Ferraris at Zandvoort

Lewis Hamilton finished just seven hundredths off the pace in practice for the Dutch Grand Prix to provide him with hope he could land his first win of the season.

Five days after the first-lap accident with Fernando Alonso in Belgium which forced him to retire, Hamilton ended a competitive day for his Mercedes team in third narrowly behind Ferrari pacesetter Charles Leclerc and his team-mate Carlos Sainz.

One hundred and five thousand fans are set to create a carnival atmosphere for homecoming king Max Verstappen on Sunday.

But the Dutch driver endured a troubled day in front of his adoring fans, breaking down with a gearbox failure in the opening running, and then finishing only eighth in the second session.

Alonso called Hamilton an “idiot” after their collision at Spa-Francorchamps, and the Briton’s early bath capped a poor weekend for Mercedes on Formula One’s return to action following its summer shutdown.

Hamilton qualified an eye-watering 1.8 seconds off the pace in Belgium with team-mate George Russell even further back.

But on the evidence of Friday’s practice, the shorter, twisty Zandvoort circuit appears better suited to the Silver Arrows.

The 37-year-old heads into the 15th round of 22 on the longest losing streak of his career following a turbulent campaign.

However, his speed, and Red Bull’s apparent lack of pace, will leave Hamilton believing he might yet retain his remarkable record of winning at least one race in each season he has competed.

On an encouraging day for McLaren, Lando Norris finished fourth, only one tenth behind Leclerc, with Russell, who led Hamilton in a Mercedes one-two in first practice, notable for Verstappen’s absence, finishing fifth.

The opening action of the weekend at Zandvoort, 25 miles west of Amsterdam, was just 10 minutes old when Verstappen stopped on track with smoke pouring out the back of his Red Bull.

“Something went with the gearbox,” the Dutchman reported, leaving his orange army stunned into silence.

The running was suspended for nine minutes as Verstappen’s wounded machine was towed away.

Red Bull fixed Verstappen’s car for the second session and images of the Dutchman being strapped into his machine were greeted by huge roars from the partisan crowd.

But Verstappen, 93 points clear in the standings, finished a distant seven tenths behind Leclerc, with team-mate Sergio Perez 12th.