The reigning F1 world champion fought his way back after Bottas led FP1 to set the fastest time of the day in the afternoon session, with Hamilton scoring a time of 1: 18.170 seconds on a soft tire run.
Bottas finished a Mercedes 1-2 in FP2, 0.139 seconds behind Hamilton’s fastest time, but was just 0.026 seconds ahead of Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc in an incredibly competitive lead group, with the top 14 drivers going less than a second.
After Max Verstappen had driven far on the soft tires during his qualifying-style run and caught oversteer, Max Verstappen dropped back to ninth place in the FP2 times for Red Bull with his fastest lap time on the medium-sized tires.
It was also a difficult day over a single lap for Verstappen’s team-mate Sergio Perez, who only finished 10th for Red Bull in the second session at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya.
Alpine can take courage from its Friday show with Esteban Ocon in fourth and Fernando Alonso in fifth in FP2, with a similar solid performance from AlphaTauri with Pierre Gasly in sixth and Yuki Tsunoda in seventh.
Carlos Sainz Jr. finished eighth before his home race for Ferrari, the two Red Bull drivers completed the top 10.
While there were no major incidents in FP2, the morning session was briefly interrupted when Alfa Romeo test driver Robert Kubica – who stepped in for Kimi Räikkönen – turned into the gravel in the newly profiled Turn 10 7, but avoided serious damage.
Robert Kubica, Alfa Romeo Racing C41, highlights the red flags in FP1 by stranding his car in the gravel
Photo by: Steven Tee / Motorsport Images
When does qualification for the Spanish Grand Prix start?
Qualifying for the Spanish GP begins at 3:00 p.m. local time (2:00 p.m. BST) in the regular Q1, Q2 and Q3 knockout format.
Date: Saturday, May 8th, 2021
Start time: 3:00 p.m. local time – 2:00 p.m. BST
How can I see qualifying?
In the UK, every F1 practice, qualifying and race will be broadcast live on Sky Sports F1, with coverage of the Spanish GP starting at 1:00 p.m. CEST.
Autosport will provide live text coverage of the qualifying here.
Mick Schumacher, Haas VF-21
Photo by: Mark Sutton / Motorsport Images
When can I see the highlights?
In the UK, Channel 4 will broadcast highlights from qualifying for the Spanish GP on Saturday at 6:30 p.m. CEST. The full program lasts 90 minutes and includes both qualifying and the most important topics of conversation from the race weekend so far.
During the entire 2021 F1 season, Channel 4 will broadcast the highlights of every qualifying and race on Saturday and Sunday of every event. The highlights will also be available through Channel 4’s on-demand catch-up service.
Channel: Channel 4
Start time: 6:30 p.m. BST
Will it be on the radio?
Live radio broadcasts of every practice, qualifying and race for the 2021 F1 season will be available on BBC Radio 5 Live, BBC 5 Live Sports Extra or via the BBC Sport website.
Spanish GP qualifying coverage will begin at 1:55 p.m. BST on the BBC 5 Live Sports Extra channel.
Carlos Sainz Jr., Ferrari SF21
Photo by: Steven Tee / Motorsport Images
What is the weather forecast for qualifying in Barcelona?
Sunny but cloudy conditions are predicted for Saturday afternoon at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, but it is expected to remain dry throughout. At the beginning of qualifying, temperatures should be 24 degrees Celsius – around six degrees warmer than in qualifying for the Portuguese GP.
Will there be fans at the Spain GP?
Due to the ongoing COVID-19 restrictions, only 1000 fans will be admitted to the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya and only on Sunday 9 May at the same time as the restrictions are relaxed. The fans admitted to participate are selected at random from the circle’s membership group. No other day during the Spanish GP will allow fans on the track.
FP2 result
FP1 result
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