Mark Webber topped the second free practice session at Spa-Francorchamps in the build-up to the Belgian Grand Prix.
In a session where the Australian completed 22 laps, Webber notched up a best lap of 1:50.321 on the soft Pirelli tyres, before a steady fall of rain silenced proceedings.
Webber came away from the practice with 1.469 second advantage over Red Bull teammate Sebastian Vettel, although the reigning Champion’s best came via the slowing, longer-lasting medium compound tyre.
Fernando Alonso came close to placing his Ferrari at the top of the pile, with a time just 0.14 of-a-second shy of the Red Bull.
The Spaniard managed 18 laps over the changeable session, allowing himself to be the first to run on slicks in the early running.
The McLaren’s of Jenson Button (3rd) and Lewis Hamilton (4th) were next up, both of whom only ran nine laps apiece as they struggled to catch dry running.
Williams did not have the best of practices, with Rubens Barrichello found his FW33 shy of a working KERS unit. It did not stop the veteran from being only two-tenths shy of teammate Pastor Maldonado, following a 17 lap stint.
Vitaly Petrov had another tough session in his Renault. The Russian suffered from a pulling steering wheel, limiting him to only 12 laps in the early part of the session.
Petrov rounded out the timesheets – his best lap set at the session beginning in damp conditions – while new teammate Bruno Senna registered the 17th best time, before the rain fell.
Pos Driver Team/Car Time Gap Laps 1. Mark Webber Red Bull-Renault 1m50.321s 22 2. Fernando Alonso Ferrari 1m50.461s + 0.140s 18 3. Jenson Button McLaren-Mercedes 1m50.770s + 0.449s 9 4. Lewis Hamilton McLaren-Mercedes 1m50.838s + 0.517s 9 5. Felipe Massa Ferrari 1m51.218s + 0.897s 14 6. Nico Rosberg Mercedes 1m51.242s + 0.921s 22 7. Sergio Perez Sauber-Ferrari 1m51.655s + 1.334s 20 8. Nico Hulkenberg Force India-Mercedes 1m51.725s + 1.404s 17 9. Paul di Resta Force India-Mercedes 1m51.751s + 1.430s 8 10. Sebastian Vettel Red Bull-Renault 1m51.790s + 1.469s 13 11. Michael Schumacher Mercedes 1m51.922s + 1.601s 22 12. Pastor Maldonado Williams-Cosworth 1m52.750s + 2.429s 20 13. Kamui Kobayashi Sauber-Ferrari 1m52.780s + 2.459s 25 14. Jaime Alguersuari Toro Rosso-Ferrari 1m52.911s + 2.59 s 24 15. Sébastien Buemi Toro Rosso-Ferrari 1m53.009s + 2.688s 24 16. Rubens Barrichello Williams-Cosworth 1m53.156s + 2.835s 17 17. Bruno Senna Renault 1m53.835s + 3.514s 20 18. Jarno Trulli Lotus-Renault 1m55.051s + 4.730s 20 19. Timo Glock Virgin-Cosworth 1m55.494s + 5.173s 22 20. Heikki Kovalainen Lotus-Renault 1m56.202s + 5.881s 15 21. Jerome D'Ambrosio Virgin-Cosworth 1m56.816s + 6.495s 20 22. Tonio Liuzzi HRT-Cosworth 1m57.450s + 7.129s 19 23. Daniel Ricciardo HRT-Cosworth 1m57.612s + 7.291s 24 24. Vitaly Petrov Renault 2m02.234s + 11.913s 12
