Magny-Cours – Day 3: The hat-trick for Jules Bianchi

Expected, the rain did not miss its appointment with the Magny-Cours circuit, disrupting the morning tests. After driving for Force India yesterday, Jules Bianchi is back behind the wheel of the Ferrari F2012 today, while Force India called upon Venezuelan Rodolfo Gonzalez. At Mercedes, pleased with its progress, the German team decided to test Brendon Hartley at the wheel of the F1 W03.

Due to the conditions, the drivers drove little in the morning, primarily using Intermediate and Rain tires, giving some of these young drivers the opportunity to discover the behavior of their respective single-seaters.

In the afternoon, the drivers were able to enjoy an almost dry track under a cloudy sky that revealed the sun. On this occasion, the teams engaged in new aerodynamic tests, notably using the aerodynamic flow visualization liquid.

Force India ended its day at 4 p.m., with Rodolfo Gonzalez gradually getting used to a track he didn’t know to post a lap of 1:18.018 after 79 laps. However, Jules Bianchi was faster than him, achieving a time of 1:16.985 at the very end of the session, while the Maranello team finished its session at 6 p.m.

At Mercedes, Brendon Hartley settled for the third fastest time of the day, at 1:18.671, but completed 87 laps before 5 PM, the time at which the German team’s mechanics started packing up.

In the end, another incident-free day, despite the rain… It remains to be seen if Formula One will soon return to the Nivernais circuit for a possible French Grand Prix.

Ranking of the 3rd Day of the 2012 Magny-Cours Young Drivers Test: