Hamilton fastest as Vettel hits trouble

F1 Grand Prix, GP Russia, Sochi International Street Circuit

Having been easily outpaced by his team mate in the morning session, Lewis Hamilton was immediately on the pace in the second practice session, going fastest on his first few attempts without anybody else seemingly coming close.

Hamilton was about a tenth ahead of Vettel and another half second quicker than Rosberg before they all switched to the super soft tyres. Hamilton similarly proved fastest on those, with Rosberg unable to improve and Vettel coming to a halt with electrical trouble.

Having had just 30 minutes of running, Vettel rolled to a stop in front of the pitlane. A virtual safety car period was engaged to allow the marshalls to safely return the car to the garage. It immediately meant the end of the session for the German, who later incurred a 5-place grid penalty as the team found it necessary to install a new gearbox into the Ferrari SF16-H.

Raikkonen went 4th fastest, with again Ricciardo looking agile enough to be the best of the rest.

After the first 30 minutes, teams as usual switched to race simulations, but with the continued low levels of grip, numerous drivers were caught out and and seen going off track or into spins, all without damage.