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Hamilton was in impressive form in his McLaren in Germany

Lewis Hamilton left his title rivals trailing as he dominated both practice sessions for the German Grand Prix.

The McLaren driver blitzed the rain-hit morning session before posting a hot lap of one minute 15.025 seconds in improved conditions at Hockenheim.

Ferrari's Felipe Massa was 0.7 secs adrift of Hamilton with his team-mate Kimi Raikkonen a shade further back.

McLaren's Kovalainen was fourth, ahead of Mark Webber - the only other driver within a second of Hamilton.

The Red Bull driver was followed by Renault's Fernando Alonso, who had been fourth in the morning, with Williams' Nico Rosberg posting the seventh fastest time.

Robert Kubica got to grips with the circuit in the afternoon, coming in eighth for BMW Sauber.

The Pole provided the only incident in the first session when he slid across the gravel going into the Agip Kurve and ploughed into the tyre wall.

606: DEBATE Mclaren will be very strong this weekend and seem to have the upper hand thef1freak

Nick Heidfeld and David Coulthard completed the top 10 fastest times with Jenson Button 13th fastest for Honda.

After his brilliant win on home soil at Silverstone, Hamilton is seeking back-to-back victories in Germany and sole ownership of top spot in the drivers' standings.

Hamilton is locked in a three-way tie with Ferrari duo Massa and Raikkonen on 48 points, though the McLaren driver has the edge on countback.

"It was a very strong performance and just showed we are very competitive with a strong package," said Hamilton.

"I don't think one race gives you momentum, it gives you a boost and hopefully we can have a good one this weekend."

Practice at Hockenheim started on a wet track and, although the rain soon abated, it was not until an hour into the 90-minute session that a fully dry line had emerged.

Hamilton once again showed his mastery of the damp conditions, despite a spin at Turn Four, clocking 1:15.537 to top the timesheets ahead of Kovalainen.

The sun broke through overcast skies for the second session and all the main contenders took advantage to post faster times.

The placings suggest another close battle between the two big teams on Sunday, but Hamilton will relish the weather forecast, with more rain predicted for both Saturday's qualifying session and the race.

Massa was the fastest of the two Ferraris in Germany

Raikkonen, by contrast, said before arriving in Hockenheim that he was hoping for the hot conditions traditionally seen at this race, as these would play into the hands of Ferrari.

The Italian cars are kinder to their tyres than the McLarens - so a hot race would potentially give them an advantage on that front.

It would also minimise the disadvantage Ferrari have in qualifying - their car does not get its tyres up to operating temperature as quickly as the McLaren, so their drivers have struggled for one-lap pace.

Raikkonen has described this as a race he "really needs to win" after a run of four frustrating results.

The world champion's last victory was at the Spanish Grand Prix in April.

He has failed to score points in two of the last four races, finishing ninth in Monaco and then being taken out by Hamilton in the pit lane in Canada.

He then lost a victory in France when his exhaust broke, forcing him to settle for second place behind Massa, and was fourth in Britain after Ferrari made strategic errors in the wet conditions.

Times from second practice at the German Grand Prix:

1. Lewis Hamilton (GB) McLaren-Mercedes one min 15.025 seconds
2. Felipe Massa (Brz) Ferrari 1:15.722
3. Kimi Raikkonen (Fin) Ferrari 1:15.760
4. Heikki Kovalainen (Fin) McLaren-Mercedes 1:15.990
5. Mark Webber (Aus) RedBull - Renault 1:16.017
6. Fernando Alonso (Spa) Renault 1:16.230
7. Nico Rosberg (Ger) Williams - Toyota 1:16.355
8. Robert Kubica (Pol) BMW Sauber 1:16.363
9. Nick Heidfeld (Ger) BMW Sauber 1:16.377
10. David Coulthard (GB) RedBull - Renault 1:16.378
11. Sebastian Vettel (Germany) Toro Rosso - Ferrari 1:16.422
12. Jarno Trulli (Ita) Toyota 1:16.530
13. Jenson Button (GB) Honda 1:16.542
14. Rubens Barrichello (Brz) Honda 1:16.677
15. Nelson Piquet (Brz) Renault 1:16.734
16. Timo Glock (Ger) Toyota 1:16.781
17. Kazuki Nakajima (Jpn) Williams - Toyota 1:16.829
18. Sebastien Bourdais (Fra) Toro Rosso - Ferrari 1:16.860
19. Adrian Sutil (Ger) Force India - Ferrari 1:17.008
20. Giancarlo Fisichella (Ita) Force India - Ferrari 1:17.047

Times from first practice:

1. Lewis Hamilton (GB) McLaren-Mercedes one minute 15.537 seconds
2. Heikki Kovalainen (Fin) McLaren-Mercedes 1:15.666
3. Felipe Massa (Brz) Ferrari 1:15.796
4. Fernando Alonso (Spa) Renault 1:16.163
5. Kimi Raikkonen (Fin) Ferrari 1:16.327
6. Nico Rosberg (Ger) Williams-Toyota 1:16.606
7. Sebastian Vettel (Ger) Toro Rosso-Ferrari 1:16.618
8. Nick Heidfeld (Ger) BMW Sauber 1:16.719
9. Kazuki Nakajima (Jpn) Williams-Toyota 1:16.821
10. Nelson Piquet Jr (Brz) Renault 1:17.063
11. David Coulthard (GB) Red Bull-Renault 1:17.108
12. Jenson Button (GB) Honda 1:17.131
13. Timo Glock (Ger) Toyota 1:17.185
14. Mark Webber (Aus) Red Bull-Renault 1:17.268
15. Giancarlo Fisichella (Ita) Force India-Ferrari 1:17.471
16. Rubens Barrichello (Brz) Honda 1:17.500
17. Jarno Trulli (Ita) Toyota 1:17.556
18. Adrian Sutil (Ger) Force India-Ferrari 1:17.784
19. Robert Kubica (Pol) BMW Sauber 1:18.779
20. Sebastien Bourdais (Fra) Toro Rosso-Ferrari 1:21.506