Friday: Alonso calm, Räikkönen troubled at Ferrari

Fernando Alonso (#14) – 1st and 3rd

The Spaniard’s day was relatively calm, even though the hours before were filled with tension and apprehension: « The first Friday of the season, there is always a bit more tension. There is the anticipation of seeing how the things we’ve worked on during the winter perform. »

« Overall, it was a positive day for us and even though there was an element of nervousness due to the complexity introduced by the new rules, everything went well. The team did a great job and we had no issues, » he added.

The track of the semi-permanent circuit in Melbourne gained grip as the cars made their laps, but the times produced are not representative for the double world champion: « The track improved between the first and second sessions, with more grip […] and also more wind. Running on soft tires certainly helped, as the extra grip allowed for faster times, but it’s impossible to get a clear idea of our competitiveness because, as usual, Friday’s results don’t mean much. To learn more, we need to wait until everyone runs for the same thing. »

Kimi Räikkönen (n°7) – 9th and 7th

Relatively hectic day for the Finn who did not experience as smooth free practice sessions as his teammate: « It was a demanding day because even though we managed to complete our program, it was not without issues. »

Completed program, but with some hitches: « During the first session, we lost a bit of time, but it didn’t prevent us from obtaining enough data to assess the handling of the car and the Pirelli compounds. » Free Practice 2 was notably marked by a gearbox problem for Iceman at the end of the pit lane; the driver has also been working on these issues: « This afternoon, there was a lot of work to do, especially to understand what didn’t work and to try to make progress for qualifying and the race. »