Barcelona Pre-Season Test – Day 8: An all-time record and a small shadow for Räikkönen
Kimi Räikkönen will go down as the only driver this winter to clock a 1'18 on the Barcelona circuit. However, the fastest man of the moment ended the final day at a standstill...
The cap did not withstand the last laps of the pre-season. Already threatened this Thursday by Sebastian Vettel, it was indeed his teammate who took charge of showing the speed of the SF70H, for good. With always radiant weather (bright sun and 24 degrees in the air!) and super-soft tires, it was enough for Iceman, with a time of 1:18.634.
The highlight of the show: Ferrari’s speed
This time will remain the absolute reference of the two sessions held at the Circuit de Catalunya since Monday, February 27. On a general level, Räikkönen is only three-tenths short of the absolute best lap achieved by a Formula 1 at Montmelo! A record still held by another Ferrari, the F2008, which was driven at the time by Felipe Massa. Against this season’s field, the 2007 world champion stands alone. In the overall standings, he leads by nearly 4 tenths over Vettel’s absolute mark and by almost 7 tenths ahead of the best of the two Mercedes!
By being picky, one might even point out that Räikkönen could not excel with the ultra-soft tires! That said, the configuration of the Catalan track is hardly suited to this type of rubber, which struggles in the third sector. As proof, his best time with the purple tires was three-tenths slower.
Ferrari full house today at #F1Testing
Will their form translate to FP1 and FP2 two weeks from today in 🇺🇸?
We’re counting the days 🤔 ⏳ pic.twitter.com/TL2WjeWuYc
— Formula 1 (@F1) March 10
But not everything was perfect for Scuderia Ferrari: the last run of the afternoon went up in smoke along with the engine. In the adventure, Räikkönen tried as best as he could to return to his pit. He ended his run with a low-speed spin as he arrived at the last sequence of the circuit. Before that, the former McLaren and Lotus driver had the opportunity to monitor tire degradation by completing laps at a constant pace.
Kimi Räikkönen after his spin
📷: joannasiewiorek pic.twitter.com/GC2pwspHYQ— Räikkönen Indonesia (@KimsterIndo) March 10
In any case, the general impression left by the new Ferrari is overall positive. The hope of seeing a truly competitive car again will comfort the Tifosi until Melbourne.
In the meantime, the best times this Friday stabilized after the lunch break. As has been the case in recent days, most teams were primarily studying tire degradation. Fast in the morning, Max Verstappen took second place in the day’s rankings. The gap on equal tires with Räikkönen is significant: more than eight-tenths between the two men! In terms of reliability, time was lost in the afternoon due to a turbo problem. A consolation for the French engine manufacturer, with Carlos Sainz Jr clocking the third-best time in his Toro Rosso. The Spanish driver’s diligence is also commendable: 132 laps! Despite a small issue in the last hour, which caused the final red flag of this winter testing.
Just behind, the two Mercedes remained rather discreet. Bottas and Hamilton still surpassed the milestone of 1,000 cumulative laps during these eight days of testing. Notably, no other team achieved such a performance at the end of the eight days. The W08 is a well-born car, but it still raises questions about its pace: Lewis Hamilton driving as fast on soft tires as on ultra-softs…
<blockquote class=”twitter-tweet” data-lang=”fr”<p lang=”en” dir=”ltr”<#127937;<#127937;<#127937; That’s it! <br<br<8 days = 1,096 total laps for the Silver Arrows!<a href=”https://twitter.com/ValtteriBottas”<@ValtteriBottas</a> <<a href=”https://twitter.com/LewisHamilton”<@LewisHamilton</a<gt; smashed it!! <#128074; <a href=”https://twitter.com/F1″<@F1</a> <a href=”https://twitter.com/hashtag/F1Testing?src=hash”<#F1Testing</a<gt; <a href=”https://t.co/2qPpRv670h”<pic.twitter.com/2qPpRv670h</a<gt;</p<gt;— Mercedes-AMG F1 (@MercedesAMGF1) <a href=”https://twitter.com/MercedesAMGF1/status/840249204069060608″<10 mars /f1/actualite/21755-essais-pre-saison-barcelone-jour-7-ferrari-vs-mercedes-jeu-de-dupes-a-haute-vitesse-.html</a<gt;</blockquote<gt;
Nico Hülkenberg secures sixth place with 45 laps completed. His teammate took the wheel this afternoon to add 43 laps to the bag of the Renault Sport F1 Team. Realistic or pessimistic, the German driver admitted today that even if Renault is better positioned than last year, points will be hard to come by.
Sandwiched in the standings by the yellow and black single-seaters, Sergio Pérez completes another trouble-free day for Force India. The Mexican is one of the four drivers to have crossed the barrier of 100 laps completed today, just like the newcomer Lance Stroll. Less erratic, the young Quebecer accumulates valuable mileage in preparation for his grand debut in the premier discipline.
Tenth, Romain Grosjean experienced issues at the wheel of his Haas. Early this morning, the Frenchman went through the gravel in the fifth turn, before having to abandon his VF-17, stopped in the tenth turn. In the afternoon, a water leak ended his endurance ambitions, limiting his laps to 76.
Finally, the Sauber boys bring up the rear. Marcus Ericsson took advantage of the morning session to get ahead of Pascal Wehrlein, who completed the Swiss team’s development program.
FINAL DAY NUMBERS 👀
Fastest lap time of pre-season testing ✅
132 laps for rookie Lance Stroll ✅
6 drivers under 1:20.000 ✅#F1Testing pic.twitter.com/Mm7FxLMoUj— Formula 1 (@F1) March 10
The highlight of the show (again): McLaren-Honda remains in the snare
On a general level, this Friday experienced various red flags. And in this little game, McLaren-Honda is still well-positioned. Fernando Alonso had another frustrating morning. His first two series of laps ended each time on the track, engine off. The team continued to struggle with electrical issues. With a last place and only 19 laps completed by midday, it was necessary to roll up their sleeves to improve the score. In the end, the double world champion increased his tally to 43 laps. His best time on ultra-softs barely saves the day, placing eleventh, two-tenths behind Grosjean’s Haas. But 2.7 seconds off the pace…
After encountering another electrical issue, we carried out several fixes to the car. Our afternoon run plan now resumes. #F1Testing pic.twitter.com/axZJuuuuIw
— McLaren (@McLarenF1) 10 mars /f1/actualite/21755-essais-pre-saison-barcelone-jour-7-ferrari-vs-mercedes-jeu-de-dupes-a-haute-vitesse-.html
Despite divorce rumors, let’s remember that McLaren and Honda will still have to coexist this entire season. It is simply impossible for the MCL32 to receive a new engine. It’s an understatement; the Anglo-Japanese saga is likely to animate the news of the first Grand Prix.
Moreover, Australia is now in sight! The winter tests are coming to an end, making way for the excitement of a new beginning. 14 nights of sleep now separate you from the first laps in Melbourne…
