F1
Laurence Edmondson, F1 Editor 6y

Sebastian Vettel out to 'kill Mercedes magic' at Silverstone

Formula 1

SILVERSTONE, U.K. -- Sebastian Vettel is confident he can end Mercedes' run of wins at the British Grand Prix after showing promising pace in second practice on Friday.

Mercedes' run of consecutive victories stretches back to Nico Rosberg's win at Silverstone in 2013 and will see Lewis Hamilton try for a fifth straight victory of his own on Sunday. Ferrari has not won on British soil since Fernando Alonso's victory in 2011, but after a promising practice session on Friday Vettel is confident he can dethrone Mercedes this weekend.

"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," he said. "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.

"Historically it has not been a very strong track for us. But today has been a good start and hopefully we can improve tomorrow and kill their magic."

Vettel said a number of small updates had worked well on his Ferrari on Friday, and said the key to success will be managing tyre temperatures at an unusually hot Silverstone this weekend.

"Everything we put on the car seemed to work," he said. "It's a small step in the right direction, but more important was that the balance was there right away and I felt a good rhythm from the start of the day. For a change we had a good Friday today and hopefully we can carry the momentum into tomorrow.

"The tyres are hot, too hot, but I think it's the same for all of us. Obviously the magic this weekend will be to try and keep them as cool as possible."

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