GP2 championship leader Stoffel Vandoorne started his weekend on a positive note after a disappointing sprint race at Silverstone by setting the fastest time in free practice. Nearest championship rival Alexander Rossi encountered problems with his Racing Engineering machine after a strong start, demoting him out of the top 10.
This weekend sees 4 drivers returning to or entering the series:
- Sean Gelael at Carlin replacing Johnny Cecotto Jr
- Nicolas Latifi at MP Motorsport replacing Oliver Rowland
- Zoël Amberg at Lazarus after a couple of races away
- Sergio Canamasas at Hilmer replacing Jon Lancaster, his third team in 4 races
In what was a relatively quiet session, there was minor drama for ART and Matsushita, who was 12 seconds off the pace after the first run. Whatever the issue was though it was sorted, and Matsushita posted a time quick enough for P17. Also hitting potential troubles was Alexander Rossi. The American sat in the pits having his brakes studied carefully both from outside and inside the car, although nothing else seemed to come of it.
While most were in the pits, Arthur Pic seized the opportunity to bang in some quick times and put himself up to 4th in the timings. Fellow Frenchman Nato had a moment coming out of turn 5, running wide and kicking up the dust.
| POS | NO | DRIVERS | TEAMS | TIME | GAP |
| 1 | 5 | S. Vandoorne | ART Grand Prix | 1:28.969 | |
| 2 | 15 | R. Haryanto | Campos Racing | 1:29.384 | 0.415 |
| 3 | 2 | A. Lynn | DAMS | 1:29.499 | 0.530 |
| 4 | 14 | A. Pic | Campos Racing | 1:29.552 | 0.583 |
| 5 | 1 | P. Gasly | DAMS | 1:29.562 | 0.593 |
| 6 | 11 | R. Marciello | Trident | 1:29.742 | 0.773 |
| 7 | 20 | A. Negrão | Arden International | 1:29.797 | 0.828 |
| 8 | 24 | N. Yelloly | Hilmer Motorsport | 1:29.856 | 0.887 |
| 9 | 18 | S. Sirotkin | Rapax | 1:29.873 | 0.904 |
| 10 | 9 | M. Evans | RUSSIAN TIME | 1:29.939 | 0.970 |
Qualifying takes place at 15:55 local time. Can Stoffel Vandoorne take pole and find his rhythm like his opening races?