Valtteri Bottas and Lewis Hamilton expressed satisfaction with the manner in which Mercedes began proceedings at the British Grand Prix on Friday.
Bottas led a Mercedes 1-2 in both sessions, with Hamilton finishing just 0.047s shy of his team-mate overall, despite making a mistake on his Super Soft run during the afternoon session.
“We've started the weekend really well,” said Bottas.
“In the first session, the balance was not too far away, so a positive start.
“There is still work to do to get the car more driveable and to be able to trust it more in the high-speed corners.
“But overall I think it was a good start for the weekend. We just need to work as normal, try and make improvements for tomorrow.”
The quickest times set by both Mercedes drivers were faster than Hamilton’s pole lap in 2016, and the Briton revelled in the feeling of the new-spec Formula 1 cars at Silverstone.
“The track is absolutely incredible with these new cars,” Hamilton commented.
“It was already one of the very best circuits in the world, but with this car and the speed we are able to carry through the corners, it's just phenomenal, it's like the greatest rollercoaster ride ever.
“We worked through all the sessions, fine-tuning the balance and I think we're in a good position at this early stage of the weekend.
“We still need to build upon it, but it's a great foundation moving forward.”
